Ethical Dilemmas In Health Care
Ethical Case Study
Amanda Whaley
University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee
NURS 404
10/17/2014
Summary of Events and Ethical Perspectives When clinicians enter the field of medicine, they have hopes of easing suffering and set goals towards helping patients attain their full health. But what happens when patients are deemed “legally dead” with no brain activity, and the only thing keeping their bodies alive are ventilators? Situations like this can cause profound ethical dilemmas between health care providers, their patients and family members. Such ethical dilemmas have even been considered in the popular press, including the case of 13 year old Jahi McMath who received surgical treatment at Oakland Children’s Hospital in California. …show more content…
Her mother and involved family felt strongly that “as long as she was breathing, there was hope of recovery” (Elias, 2013) and truly believed that she was still very much alive. To Latasha, it was impossible to agree to end the use of life support because that meant allowing harm to her child. This harm would ultimately result in her death. The mother’s ethical dilemma considered life-sustaining care as the ultimate good, and best choice such as it was, and certainly superior to removing cares that would cause any hope for something better to vanish almost instantly. It would go without saying that the mother may have had conflicting feelings on whether what she was doing was right for her child. It is also safe to say that no parent wants to see their young child die, let alone feel as though they are potentially responsible for their unneeded death having been responsible for the removal of life sustaining …show more content…
Although provision 1.4 supports continuing treatments, it also recognizes situations in which the right to self-determination may be outweighed or limited. It states that “serious deviation from the standard of care should be justified only when there are no less restrictive means available to preserve the rights of others and the demands of justice” (ANA code of ethics). In Jahi’s case, the standards of care of patients who suffer from brain death are considered legally dead. Keeping her on ventilators serves as an injustice to the patient, other patients and society. The use of available resources are being used up in the case of a patient who is already classified as dead, these resources should be utilized properly and made available to patients with the potential better outcomes. It is evident that “nurses caring for dying patients often struggle to determine if they are relieving pain and suffering” (Campbell, 2008). Removing life support measures would also relieve suffering and allow for the human right and dignity of a proper death. At the end of life, dignity should be provided to full extent. Providing dignity at the end of life is supported by Provision 1.1 in the ANA Code of Ethics, and consists of respect for human dignity and consists of respect for the inherent worth, dignity and human rights of every individual (ANA Code of
Amanda Whaley
University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee
NURS 404
10/17/2014
Summary of Events and Ethical Perspectives When clinicians enter the field of medicine, they have hopes of easing suffering and set goals towards helping patients attain their full health. But what happens when patients are deemed “legally dead” with no brain activity, and the only thing keeping their bodies alive are ventilators? Situations like this can cause profound ethical dilemmas between health care providers, their patients and family members. Such ethical dilemmas have even been considered in the popular press, including the case of 13 year old Jahi McMath who received surgical treatment at Oakland Children’s Hospital in California. …show more content…
Her mother and involved family felt strongly that “as long as she was breathing, there was hope of recovery” (Elias, 2013) and truly believed that she was still very much alive. To Latasha, it was impossible to agree to end the use of life support because that meant allowing harm to her child. This harm would ultimately result in her death. The mother’s ethical dilemma considered life-sustaining care as the ultimate good, and best choice such as it was, and certainly superior to removing cares that would cause any hope for something better to vanish almost instantly. It would go without saying that the mother may have had conflicting feelings on whether what she was doing was right for her child. It is also safe to say that no parent wants to see their young child die, let alone feel as though they are potentially responsible for their unneeded death having been responsible for the removal of life sustaining …show more content…
Although provision 1.4 supports continuing treatments, it also recognizes situations in which the right to self-determination may be outweighed or limited. It states that “serious deviation from the standard of care should be justified only when there are no less restrictive means available to preserve the rights of others and the demands of justice” (ANA code of ethics). In Jahi’s case, the standards of care of patients who suffer from brain death are considered legally dead. Keeping her on ventilators serves as an injustice to the patient, other patients and society. The use of available resources are being used up in the case of a patient who is already classified as dead, these resources should be utilized properly and made available to patients with the potential better outcomes. It is evident that “nurses caring for dying patients often struggle to determine if they are relieving pain and suffering” (Campbell, 2008). Removing life support measures would also relieve suffering and allow for the human right and dignity of a proper death. At the end of life, dignity should be provided to full extent. Providing dignity at the end of life is supported by Provision 1.1 in the ANA Code of Ethics, and consists of respect for human dignity and consists of respect for the inherent worth, dignity and human rights of every individual (ANA Code of