prepare a written document response to a case study that applies the steps of ethical reasoning to a medical challenge. Please follow the instructions below and prepare your document. Be sure to save in .doc or .docx format, and to follow APA guidelines.
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Instructions:
In Module 5, we detailed the steps of ethical reasoning.
Review the Euthanasia case study.
Module 5 Case Study Euthanasia.pdf
Module 5 Case Study Euthanasia.pdf – Alternative Formats
Apply the steps of ethical reasoning and analysis and develop a recommendation for the medical ethics issue presented.
What is your opinion on taking a human rights approach to the issue of euthanasia?
Please include your response to the questions at the end of the case study in your recommendation.
HCM 6300 Case Study – Module 6 – Medical Ethics Issue
Euthanasia
The word “euthanasia” draws its roots from the Greek meaning “good death.” As it is used in
this discussion, it means “the act of ending the life of a person suffering from either a terminal
illness or an incurable disease.” The American Medical Association (AMA) is against physicians
assisting in euthanasia.
On October 27, 1997, Oregon enacted the Death with Dignity Act which allows terminally-ill
Oregonians to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications,
expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose. Physician-assisted death or “medical aid
in dying” is legal in eleven jurisdictions: California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Hawaii,
Montana, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.
Euthanasia advocates stress that it should be allowed as an extension of a person’s autonomy.
Those who are against euthanasia often say that it can lead to the devaluation of human life,
and to a slippery slope in which the old and disabled will be killed on the whims of healthy
people.
A woman was diagnosed with motor neuron disease (the same disease as Stephen Hawking) 5
years ago. This is a condition that destroys motor nerves, making control of movement
impossible, while the mind is virtually unaffected. People with motor neuron disease normally
die within 4 years of diagnosis from suffocation due to the inability of the inspiratory muscles to
contract. The woman’s condition has steadily declined. She is not expected to live through the
month and is worried about the pain that she will face in her final hours. She asks her doctor to
give her diamorphine for pain if she begins to suffocate or choke. This will lessen her pain, but it
will also hasten her death. About a week later, she falls very ill and is having trouble breathing.
The doctor comes to you for a recommendation. Using the steps of ethical reasoning and
analysis, develop a recommendation for this medical ethics issue. Include in your
recommendation response to the following questions:
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•
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Does this woman have a right to make this choice, especially since she will be dead in a
short while (say six hours)? Is this choice an extension of her autonomy?
Is the short amount of time she has to live ethically relevant? Is there an ethical
difference between her dying in 6 hours and dying in a week? What about a year, and
how do you draw this distinction?
Should the money used to care for this woman be considered when she is being helped?
Do you think that legalizing euthanasia could create conflicts of interest for the
patient/or the doctor? Will people feel that they need to end their lives earlier to save
money?
Source: https://www.scu.edu/ethics/focus-areas/bioethics/resources/cases-in-medical-ethics-studentled-discussions/
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