Euthanasia, the ‘mercy killing’, has definitely been one of the most difficult ethical dilemmas. Euthanasia is defined “an action or an omission, aimed at and causally implicated in, the death of another for her/his own sake” (Foot, 1997, as cited in Robert, 2004, p. 145). Euthanasia differs from murder, because the action causing the death is for the sake of the person to be killed. Someone might say that the person wanted to die anyway, so why ending his or her lives can be wrong? Is active euthanasia –acting to end the life of another- ever a right moral action? It is not an easy debate whether it is right or wrong to help end someone’s life. Some people might argue that active euthanasia is morally wrong, because there is no objective measure of suffering (Robert, 2004). It can, however, be said that active euthanasia can also be justifiable, because it is to end the person’s misery. The purpose of this paper is to debate whether active euthanasia is ever permissible. This will be accomplished by analyzing the case study: “Active Euthanasia with Parental Consent” (Robert, 2004, p. 153) and providing the best possible moral resolution. The paper will then discuss conclusion.…
Euthanasia, also known as mercy killing, is defined as putting to death someone that is suffering from a painful or prolonged illness. An individual acts on behalf of the patient to end their life by making the means of death available and serving as the agent of death. Voluntary euthanasia occurs when a patient gives consent while involuntary euthanasia is when they do not. In non-voluntary euthanasia the patient is not able to give consent. (ANA, 2013). In this paper we will discuss ethical theories and principals for our position on Euthanasia, as well as explain how these theories and principals apply to euthanasia. The impact on values, morals, and nursing practice will also be discussed.…
Euthanasia is another term for mercy killing. It is said to be the act of putting to death painlessly a person suffering from such incurable or painful disease. Meanwhile, in the 21st century it has been argued that euthanasia is one of the famous social concerns nowadays. Moreover, it is usually done by doctors to their patients who are terminally ill. Although euthanasia ends the suffering of the patients, it can damage the teachings of some religions, principle of medical ethics, and the patients trust.…
Euthanasia as defined by the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary is a quiet and easy death. One may wonder, is there such a thing as a quiet and easy death? This is one point that I will discuss in my paper, however the question that my paper will answer is; should active euthanasia be legalized? First, I will look at Philippa Foot's article on Euthanasia and discuss my opinions on it. Second, I will look at James Rachel's article on active and passive euthanasia and discuss why I agree with his argument. Finally, I will conclude by saying that while the legalizing of active euthanasia would benefit many people, it would hurt too many, thus I believe that it should not be legalized.…
Be prepared to discuss the handout I gave you entitled “Take the Road to IT Value”…
There is considerable debate today, both among the public and the politicians, about euthanasia. While the governmnt is hesitatant to venture into morals and ethics, it appears that euthanasia is gaining more press coverage, in light of the Sue Rodriguez and Robert Latimer cases. Indeed, the issue is difficult to resolve, and despite few advances, the government has enacted penalties in the Criminal Code to punish assisted suicide. Without reservation, euthanasia is illegal in Canada. Anincreasing number of people are turning to doctor-assisted suicide. As a result of a more liberal political arena, more people are agreeing that some form of euthanasia must be acceptable in specific circumstances. Politicians, and the courts, claim that the country is not yet ready for such a climate. The characterization of pro-euthanasia advocates by their counterparts as selfish, taking the easy way out, diserespectful of life, and challenging human dignity is misconstrued. Pro-euthanasia groups advocate self-dignity, personal choice, economic well-being, happiness, family support, and individual rights. The word euthanasia simply means good death, but has come to mean causing death with intent, whether by doing something (commission), or by omitting something(omission). Euphemisms of the pro-euthanasia movement, include "right to die", and "death with dignity". The term "passive euthanasia" is often applied to the withdrawal of useless treatment thatonly prolonging the dying of a person. This needs to be differentiated from withdrawing of something that is actually keeping them alive, the withdrawl of which actually causes their death. It has been pointed out that the pro- life lobby will be split and discredited if there is an insistence by some that all technological means must be used whenever possible to prolong life. No ethical doctor insists on the use of burdensome, ineffective of futile measure, commonly called 'disproportionate', when refused by the patient or…
Euthanasia is the practice of mercifully ending a person 's life in order to free someone from a deadly disease. The Greek word “Euthanasia” simply means “good death”. This refers to the intentional ending of a person or animal’s life to relieve suffering and pain. It is also known as “Mercy Killing”. It is a serious ethical and political issue in today’s society because it goes against the norms of traditional medicine. It is so, because some people define euthanasia as a form of suicide. However, some people actually think that it is a choice that concerns the quality of life. In fact, people have different standards regarding the worth of life. Others believe that being clinically alive is enough to say that a person should live, but for others, it is simply inadequate. If a person’s life is lacking in self awareness or intrinsic presence as a human being, due to extreme physical or mental suffering, then that person should be able to choose a dignified death rather than an undignified existence. This is evident because of moral conscience, social bias or pressure, and financial situations. It is portrayed that nurture or environmental factors plays a role that make euthanasia more appealing. In short, some people tend to disregard the moral and ethical values of life when they see a person suffering. Indeed, despite of the moral and ethical issues that contradict the concept of euthanasia, there are certain factors it impacts society positively, which leads it to be more socially acceptable.…
At present a very serious issue has jumped into the consideration and thinking of the society. The government is pondering on whether to accept the growing numbers of Euthanasia or to deny them. Euthanasia is when people suffering from long term chronic .are non conformist i.e. who don't want to live are benefited more than other people…
The Right to die is a highly debatable and argumentative subject at present surrounded by controversy and dilemma requiring public attention. For years, arguments among different doctrines and viewpoint in regards to ones “right to die” have public opinion beginning to move away from modern medicine, back to the historical arguments on euthanasia: to avoid suffering the dying person has the right to end their life by another if that is necessary. Our society is at war in arguing to protect life no matter what the circumstance and fighting for the rights of an individual who is unable to communicate if he or she wants to continue living. Laws are being purposed to help protect people in a controversy position and protecting their rights. The medical end finds physicians and families at odds with these governmental laws when faced with a decision under certain circumstances. The purpose of this paper will review the issues of the “right to die” that are hot topics among the medical community which include: ethical dilemmas, individual rights, and society efforts to keep the law supporting the needs of the many.…
In this essay I will argue that euthanasia should be provided to patients who are chronically and/or terminally ill if those patients request as much. Euthanasia is the intentional putting to death of a person to lessen the pain and suffering for compassionate motives someone who are chronically and/or terminally ill, when those persons requested to die (Grainger, 2011). In this way, I would like to focus on active voluntary euthanasia. Active voluntary euthanasia is the person makes the choice actively to end of their life through requested for assistance from others that allow them to end of their life (Grainger, 2011). In this essay, I will use preference utilitarianism perspective, and apply with autonomy, role of nurses as patient advocate in end of life care, professionalism of nurses with apply ANMC code of ethics value statement two and conclude my arguments.…
Extreme cases are used and presented as unresolvable, so if today we accept to intentionally kill a patient as a solution to a problem, tomorrow we can find a hundred problems for which killing is the solution. The application of euthanasia is an ethical dilemma. Euthanasia has been managed by two philosophical currents, made up of men of science and religion based on the beliefs and knowledge that until then their peers, as social beings, have developed invoking human dignity, both to defend it and to reject it. For its defenders, the human dignity of the sick…
The word “Euthanasia” comes from a Greek phrase meaning “good death”. However, in today’s society it means killing a terminally ill person as a way to end that person’s pain and suffering (Cundiff 1). In the 70’s, a movement that had tried to legalize some form of euthanasia, and it has been referred to as the “Right to Die” Movement (Yount 12).…
One of the most hotly debated ethical issue of our time is one of Euthanasia. Euthanasia comes from the Greek words “Eu”, meaning well or easy, and “Thanatos”, meaning death. In modern terms it is the intentional premature termination of another’s life by direct intervention or by withholding care.[1] Within that it can be either voluntary (expressed or implied consent), or involuntary. The two sides of this debate are the rights of an individual to decide when he or she is to die, or the sanctity of life and the states responsibility to protect people.…
For relevance, this article tells us about a brand new option for euthanasia that is carried out through mobile clinics in the Netherlands. So far, euthanasia is legal in only the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Australia and Oregon in the USA. This can be seen as a ‘controversial’ new option that makes euthanasia even more accessible in the Netherlands. It raises questions whether this new ‘convenience’ could result in an abuse of the legislation with doctors and patients going too far. The debate over the whether it should be a right for people to choose when and how to die, with dignity, has been going on for a long time in many countries, especially in developed countries. This is also relevant to us locally as we have an ageing population in Singapore. Although we have other measures in place such as the Advanced Medical Directive, euthanasia has not been legalised in Singapore. With greater attention being given to palliative care in recent years, the different perspectives in the euthanasia debate around the world is not far removed from us. The question remains as to whether our society is ready for measures such as euthanasia.…
Euthanasia is the practice of ending a life in order to release an individual from unbearable suffering or an incurable disease. Euthanasia the word is derived from Ancient Greek, Eu meaning “good” and Thantos meaning “Death” and when combined the term means “Good Death”. Mercy Death by definition is taking a direct action to terminate a person’s life because the person has requested to do so. This also includes physician assisted suicide, not to be confused with suicide which is the taking of one’s life by one’s own hand without assistance. Mercy Killing is also a term used and it refers to someone taking a direct action to terminate a person’s life without the person’s permission. Within this paper I will discuss Immanuel Kant and the utilitarianism ethical theories revolving around the issues of euthanasia.…