End of Life Decisions
Running head: END OF LIFE DECISIONS
End of Life Decisions
Tina Hancock Roberts
PHI 208/Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Professor Stanley Stolte
September 1, 2014
End of Life Decisions
The decisions we all make at the ending of our life as we know it on earth have been of question as it relates to ethics for years. If a person decides to end their own life by refusing medical care, is this still considered suicide? Is it even morally acceptable to the families who face these situations? In most religions, it is considered a sin to take one’s own life, so how can we be ethically and morally accepting of assisted suicide in people with terminally ill diseases? In this essay, we will examine this issue further and discuss why it is acceptable to some and unacceptable to others.
Ending One’s Own Life
In certain instances is it morally and ethically right to assist a patient with taking their own lives to end their suffering due to a terminal illness? While in some states it is legally acceptable to do so, that does not actually mean it is ethically right to do so. When a physician takes an oath, he promises to do everything he can in order to save lives, not take them. However, I do believe that there are instances that could lead a respected physician into making the decision to end his patient’s suffering if there is no hope for recovery. Having watched many family members suffer a disease that is horrific to go through like Polycystic Kidney Disease, I would say that it may not be ethical to some who have not experienced such suffering firsthand. However, once you see a person that you love and care about going through such agony and know it will only get worse, accepting an assisted suicide situation makes more sense.
I feel as people who know what suffering is, the value of a person’s life should be taken into consideration when they are facing terminal illnesses. People deal with pain differently, and for some it can become
End of Life Decisions
Tina Hancock Roberts
PHI 208/Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Professor Stanley Stolte
September 1, 2014
End of Life Decisions
The decisions we all make at the ending of our life as we know it on earth have been of question as it relates to ethics for years. If a person decides to end their own life by refusing medical care, is this still considered suicide? Is it even morally acceptable to the families who face these situations? In most religions, it is considered a sin to take one’s own life, so how can we be ethically and morally accepting of assisted suicide in people with terminally ill diseases? In this essay, we will examine this issue further and discuss why it is acceptable to some and unacceptable to others.
Ending One’s Own Life
In certain instances is it morally and ethically right to assist a patient with taking their own lives to end their suffering due to a terminal illness? While in some states it is legally acceptable to do so, that does not actually mean it is ethically right to do so. When a physician takes an oath, he promises to do everything he can in order to save lives, not take them. However, I do believe that there are instances that could lead a respected physician into making the decision to end his patient’s suffering if there is no hope for recovery. Having watched many family members suffer a disease that is horrific to go through like Polycystic Kidney Disease, I would say that it may not be ethical to some who have not experienced such suffering firsthand. However, once you see a person that you love and care about going through such agony and know it will only get worse, accepting an assisted suicide situation makes more sense.
I feel as people who know what suffering is, the value of a person’s life should be taken into consideration when they are facing terminal illnesses. People deal with pain differently, and for some it can become
References: Cable News Network. (2014). Choosing death can be like a 'birth, ' advocates say. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/08/30/assisted.suicide.oregon/