...WHY EUTHANASIA SHOULD NOT BE LEGALIZED IN THE PHILIPPINES What is Euthanasia? According to merriam-webster dictionary online, euthanasia is the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy. It is commonly known as “mercy killing.” It could be either voluntary where a competent adult patient requests or gives informed consent to a particular course of medical treatment or non-treatment or involuntary if the decision is made without the consent of the person who is to die. The family resorts or consents the application of euthanasia if the patient is in a persistent vegetative state, brain death or coma. Actually, in most cases, the main reason is not because of the “mercy to the suffering of the person” but the incapacity to sustain financial need of the medication. The Philippines is considered as one of the developing countries until now and majority of the people belong to the poor families. But the question is, is it a valid reason for euthanasia to be legalized here in the Philippines? Is the financial incapacity of most of the Filipinos to spend for longer medication really a reasonable excuse? Many people will argue that Philippines really should legalize euthanasia given that it is a poor country and is not yet capable to provide enough medical assistance for everyone, especially to those patients that need longer hospitalization...
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..."Euthanasia means as an action which aims at taking the life of another at the latter's expressed request. It concerns an action of which death is the purpose and the result. "This definition applies only to voluntary euthanasia and excludes the non-voluntary or involuntary euthanasia, the killing of a patient without the patient's knowledge or consent. Some call this "life-terminating treatment." Euthanasia can be either active or passive. Passive euthanasia allows one to die by withholding or withdrawing life supporting means. This is a tricky area because ordinary and extraordinary means of supporting life come into the picture. Ordinary means such as nutrition and hydration are never to be withheld since they are one's basic right in order to survive. However, one is not obliged to use extraordinary or 'disproportionate' means to sustain life. Due to complexity, each situation needs to be looked at individually when discussing extraordinary means. However, as a rule, one can discontinue "medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome." One cannot intend death by withdrawing or withholding treatment, but should, however, obey God and let one die a natural death. To withdraw a treatment as a condition worsens is letting one die and not a direct killing. In this case, it is the disease that is killing and not the one who withdraws the treatment. Active euthanasia or' mercy killing' pertains to the Dr. Kevorkian’s'...
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..."Euthanasia means as an action which aims at taking the life of another at the latter's expressed request. It concerns an action of which death is the purpose and the result. "This definition applies only to voluntary euthanasia and excludes the non-voluntary or involuntary euthanasia, the killing of a patient without the patient's knowledge or consent. Some call this "life-terminating treatment." Euthanasia can be either active or passive. Passive euthanasia allows one to die by withholding or withdrawing life supporting means. This is a tricky area because ordinary and extraordinary means of supporting life come into the picture. Ordinary means such as nutrition and hydration are never to be withheld since they are one's basic right in order to survive. However, one is not obliged to use extraordinary or 'disproportionate' means to sustain life. Due to complexity, each situation needs to be looked at individually when discussing extraordinary means. However, as a rule, one can discontinue "medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome." One cannot intend death by withdrawing or withholding treatment, but should, however, obey God and let one die a natural death. To withdraw a treatment as a condition worsens is letting one die and not a direct killing. In this case, it is the disease that is killing and not the one who withdraws the treatment. Active euthanasia or' mercy killing' pertains to the Dr. Kevorkian’s'...
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...Euthanasia: Live and Let Die April 11, 2013 Euthanasia: Live and Let Die In 2004, Pope John Paul II said “A man, even if seriously sick or prevented in the exercise of its higher functions, is and will be always a man… he will never become a ‘vegetable’ or an ‘animal’. The intrinsic value and personal dignity of every human being does not change depending on their circumstances” (Pope John Paul II, 2004). Euthanasia or assisted suicide is the deliberate action of ending a life in order to relieve unstoppable suffering. Euthanasia is legal in Albania, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, as well as some US states. In some of these countries, euthanasia is generally executed by a medical professional taking into account his patient’s needs and desires; but sometimes a medical professional can dispense the last medication ending his patient’s life without the patient’s consent. However, euthanasia and assisted suicide is forbidden in the majority of countries and could be penalized by a fourteen years prison sentence. (“Euthanasia and assisted, intro”). Legalizing euthanasia is extremely controversial moral and legal issue throughout the world, but achieving that goal is extremely necessary. Although legalizing euthanasia could cause negative effects for society, the positive side of this controversy indicates that asking for death is important for those patients who have decided that after a certain point, the pain has exceeded the desire of living. On the one hand...
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...articulating the ethical theories, believes on the contrary that in every moment of our existence, every action or deed that we accomplish can be described as moral or non-moral according to the ethical principles underlying our behavior. The very important consequences arising from the two general theoretical horizons concern two different perspectives on “human nature”, or what we call the essence of the human being. Starting from this horizon we will have the consequentialist and deontological dimensions related to euthanasia. The bioethical dimension in which we will discuss the issue of euthanasia involves both dimensions or horizons. The arguments against euthanasia seem to rely rather on the Kantian deontological horizon, while euthanasia pros seem to rely on the consequentialist horizon. This text is intended as an open debate between the two horizons which cannot yet be harmonized. There is at least one class of existential situations in which euthanasia is described as “desirable” in a consequentialist view and there are situations...
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...realize its existence, I am for euthanasia. There have been around 40 million abortions since the Roe v. Wade decision was finalized on January 22, 1973. Many strong opinions arise on whether a woman should have the right to an abortion, and whether the court has the power to grant a woman this right. In the case of Roe v. Wade, the Court prohibited any regulation of abortion in the first trimester, allowed only adjustments pertaining to the health of the mother in the second, and only maternal health reasons in the third. The Roe v. Wade decision is responsible for killing about 35 million innocent human beings, and counting, as a direct result of abortion. The fight over whether to criminalize abortion has grown increasingly fierce in recent years with no end in sight, it is currently legal in all states. Another controversial topic, euthanasia, is also known as the painless killing of a patient suffering from an incurable and painful disease or in an irreversible coma. It is similar to abortion but the being is now grown. The world view on euthanasia has always been a very controversial subject. Some countries allow it, yet in other countries, it is tolerated but illegal. Voluntary euthanasia is that in which the subject consents in some places, voluntary euthanasia is accepted more so than non-voluntary euthanasia. Many people think that if a child is born with severe deformities, it and its family would benefit from euthanasia. Some people believe that a person...
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...Legalization of Euthanasia Euthanasia is a topic that has been debated by many over the years. Although Euthanasia is presently illegal in the United States, physician assisted death, or PAD is legal in the states of Washington, Oregon, Vermont and Bernalillo County, New Mexico. To understand Euthanasia, one must understand the way it differs from PAD. The key distinction between the two is that euthanasia requires either a physician or third party to administer the drugs, while in physician assisted death, the drug is administered directly by the individual. The debate over euthanasia dates back to the Greeks and Romans, but it reached the United States in 1870 when Samuel Williams proposed using morphine and anesthetics to intentionally end an individual's life. Debates continued for another 35 years when Ohio attempted to pass a bill which would legalize euthanasia in 1906. While the bill was never passed, it was the first of its kind, and laid the foundation for bills to come (Humphrys). There are many arguments as to why Euthanasia should remain illegal in the United States. Many individuals argue that it fits the definition of murder, and “For present purposes, murder can be defined as the intentional unjustified, unexcused and legally unmitigated killing of another human being. Active euthanasia fits this definition on the basis that it is the, or a cause of, death” (Lanham 2). Although there is some merit to the argument that euthanasia fits the technical definition ...
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...Bahar February 2012 Introduction The word Euthanasia originated from the Greek language: eu means “good” and thanatos means “death”. In Ancient Greece it meant literally "the good death". The term euthanasia normally means that the person who wishes to commit suicide must initiate the act. The Oxford English Dictionary Online (2nd edition, 1989; online version Sep. 2011) provides the following definitions of euthanasia: "A gentle and easy death...[T]he means of bringing about a gentle and easy death... However, in today’s society term euthanasia includes both voluntary and involuntary termination of life. Euthanasia has many meanings. Except for involuntary euthanasia, all these terms are closely related because the victim requests the action. The only difference is who is actually committing the act, Voluntary euthanasia is a help to mentally competent person to die through the assistance of others and can be divided in two categories. Passive Euthanasia means causing the death of a person by withdrawing some form of support and letting nature take its course. For example: removing life support, stopping medical procedures, stopping food and water and allowing the person to dehydrate or starve to death, and not delivering CPR. Active Euthanasia involves causing the death of a person through a direct action, in response to a request from that person. For many people, euthanasia is a preferable option compare to loss of independence...
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...Legalization of voluntary active euthanasia and assisted suicide is a highly controversial topic that involves the consideration of morals and ethics as well as possibility of both negative and positive side effects of the procedure. The main argument for those that support legalization of active euthanasia mainly relates to self-determination in which he or she makes decisions based on what they think is best for themselves. They often relate back to attempting to eliminate the distinction between "allowing to die" and causing death by active euthanasia. Relating to the article by Dan W. Brock, I will argue that that the reasons given by him are problematic because of the fact there is a distinction between allowing to die and active euthanasia, is morally wrong, and can have several side effects of legalization of active euthanasia. Brock begins his point by giving the two central arguments that are for voluntary active euthanasia - the first one being self-determination in which he stresses is an important idea behind human dignity. He states that the rationale of allowing the right to refuse life-sustaining treatment also stands true for support of active euthanasia and reason the self-determination should also extend to controlling "the manner, circumstances, and timing of their dying and death" (Brock 166). The second reason he gives for voluntary active euthanasia is individual well-being and reasons that when a person considers living any longer as harm instead of...
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...CONTENTS Click on the up arrow to return here 1) INTRODUCTION 2) DEFINITIONS 3) ETHICAL THEORY 4) ETHICAL DECISION MAKING 5) NEGLIGENCE 6) CONSENT IN COMPETENT ADULTS 7) CONSENT IN CHILDREN 8) CONSENT IN INCOMPETENT ADULTS 9) CONSENT CONCERNING UNUSUAL IDEAS 10) ADVANCE DIRECTIVES 11) CONFIDENTIALITY 12) CONFIDENTIALITY AUDIT 13) EUTHANASIA 14) ABORTION 15) BIOTECHNOLOGY 16) SUGGESTED READING ONE – INTRODUCTION (Registrar) The importance of Ethical thinking in General Practice is becoming more and more apparent. It should not be thought that Ethics merely relates to the “Life and Death” issues in our Professional life – Abortion, Contraception, Euthanasia and the like. Ethical issues affect some part of almost every consultation, even if the ethical issue is something more mundane like obtaining adequate consent for an examination or respecting a patient’s dignity. Indeed, it could be argued that the Consultation skills that we foster so assiduously are actually Ethical skills – and that we need to know the patient’s “Ideas, Concerns and Expectations” in order to respect his Autonomy as well as in order to improve the outcome of the Consultation. In the 1998/99 academic year, I was appointed the deanery’s Medical Ethics fellow with a bursary from the MDU. I developed an approach to the teaching of GP ethics based on two half day sessions, which...
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...Utilitarianism, Kantian Ethics, Natural Rights Theories, and Religious Ethics A “utilitarian” argument, in the strict sense, is one what alleges that we ought to do something because it will produce more total happiness than doing anything else would. Act utilitarianism (AU) is the moral theory that holds that the morally right action, the act that we have a moral duty to do, is the one that will (probably) maximize “utility” (happiness, welfare, well-being). AU is not to be confused with egoism. The egoist really only cares about his own happiness. AU says that everyone’s happiness counts equally. Suppose that executing Joseph would in the long run produce more total happiness than letting him live would. Then according to AU, we ought to execute Joseph. Now if Joseph is a convicted serial murderer who would probably escape and commit more murders if we tried to incarcerate him, then it’s reasonable to think that executing him would be the right thing to do. But what if he has committed no crime? What if he is simply an extremely irritating person with no friends or loved ones, and the many people with whom he has contact in his life are very sensitive and dislike him intensely? Since more total happiness is produced if Joseph dies (the increased happiness of the many who no longer have to endure him outweighs his unhappiness about dying) than if he lives, AU says that it’s right to kill him. This example illustrates what is probably the main objection to AU: it tells us to violate...
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...Professor McDonald PHL 154: Moral Foundations December 10, 2012 Voluntary Active Euthanasia: Morally Impermissible Voluntary active euthanasia can be defined as “the intentional and direct termination of a person's life when that person is terminally ill or when his or her death is imminent, and where that person is a competent adult who voluntarily, consistently and repeatedly requests the termination of his or her life. A terminally ill person is defined as one who has an incurable or irreversible condition which is highly likely to cause his or her death within a relatively short time (six months or less) with or without treatment.” In the recent election, Massachusetts voters had an opportunity to allow such a procedure as a ballot referendum. Regardless of whether it is legally permissible or not, voluntary active euthanasia (hereafter “VAE”) is morally impermissible. A Natural Law Argument According to the ethics of natural law, “our primary life goal should be to realize as fully as we can our potential as human beings” (Harris 91). To do this, people should use the standard of human nature to act in a way that is in accordance with human nature (92). Our human nature is determined by the common natural inclinations of humans (93). Human nature can be determined the goals humans collectively strive for (93). These ‘natural inclinations’, as referred to by Aquinas, “reflect the structure of our human nature, which natural law directs us to follow” (93). ...
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...Student Name: David Mc Namara. Title: Are we moving towards Assisted Suicide? “Those who have exhausted the end seek the right to die with dignity, this is a choice to die, which allows the body to speak its end rather than have that end dictated by the voice of an expert, legal or medical” (Hannifin. 2009, p.84) The person who seeks to die is, to paraphrase Foucault, ‘the Passenger par excellence: that is, the prisoner of the passage’ (Foucault. 1967, p.11) The European Convention on Human Rights sets out a number of fundamental rights and freedoms, right to life, prohibition of torture, prohibition of slavery and forced labour, right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, no punishment without law, right to respect and family life, freedoms of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association, right to marry, right to effective remedy, and prohibition of discrimination The Council of Europe produced the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in 1950. This body was formed in the aftermath of the Second World War to achieve unity among its members in such matters as the protection of fundamental rights. The Convention was drafted after the atrocities of the Second World War. The Convention was signed by the High Contracting Parties in 1950, and came into force in1953. It was ratified by the United Kingdom in 1957. Article 2 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental...
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...PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE: LEGALITY AND MORALITY Wednesday - May 8th, 2002 By Martin Levin, 107 Irving Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (617)-497-6828 mlevin@levinlaw.com On Sunday, June 21, 1992, Jennifer Cowart, age thirty-two, and her brother George Kowalski, age twenty-eight, traveled to Pensacola Beach, Florida, for a day of relaxation. At the end of the day, Jennifer and George were heading back to their vehicle when Jennifer noticed a go-kart track. The two entered the track, bought tickets, and began riding. Within one minute, Jennifer’s go-kart bumped into one of the side guardrails, flipped on its side, and burst into flames. Jennifer was seat-belted in the go-kart and could not get out. George tried to run into the fire to save his sister, but the flames were too intense. Bystanders attempted to use a fire extinguisher, but it did little to lessen the inferno. Jennifer was trapped in the burning go-kart for two minutes when her seat-belt finally burned through and she fell to the ground. George grabbed his sister and pulled her away from the fire. Jennifer was alive. She was lying on the asphalt alert, oriented, and coherent. She had suffered 3rd and 4th degree burns covering ninety-five percent of her body. She was suffering the worst pain imaginable. At the scene, Jennifer begged the rescue personnel to “let me die.” Instead, Jennifer was flown to a burn center in Mobile, Alabama, where she remained for one year until she was overcome by an infection...
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...Chapter 1: Ethical Theory Meta-ethical positions include: * Ethical non-cognitivism (concept that ethics is a matter of feelings) * Ethical relativism (concept that ethics is relative to a particular point of view) * Ethical objectivism (notion that ethics is objective in nature). Meta-Ethical Positions Ethical Non-cognitivism The basis of ethical non-cognitivism is that ethical disagreement can be a highly emotional affair where no amount of reasoning is likely to convince the other party. * Example: “Let’s just agree to disagree” Ethical Relativism * Ethical relativism says that while ethical statements are cognitively meaningful, they do not hold in any objective sense because they depend on our point of view. * If we accept ethical relativism, then ethical disagreement among people who do not share the same perspective becomes impossible. * It assumes that if people agree on something, then it must be true. * Ethical relativism is suspect for a pragmatic reason: it is fundamentally at variance with our social practice. * Example: “To each his own”, or the belief that what’s right for one group isn’t necessarily right for another Ethical Objectivism * Ethical objectivism holds that right and wrong are objective phenomena. * Example: “I’m right and you’re wrong” What is Ethics? * As a discipline, ethics is a branch of philosophy. * It deals with questions of right and wrong conduct, and with what we ought to do and what...
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