Argumentative Essay On Life Support

Life Support Have you ever wondered what you would do if you had a family member dying on life support? Would you want extraordinary measures taken to help them live? Would you want to let nature take its course? Family members can be left with the huge responsibility of what they think is best for you. Do you really want to leave this important decision for them to make? Life support should only be used in the circumstances that the patient has a chance of living off the machine. Those on life support that have an indefinite amount of the time to depend on a machine for life should be considered for organ donation. Many people need other organs in order to survive. The only way that they will get those organs is from people donating them to the ones in need. “The approximate time for the following organs/tissues is : Lung (4-6 hours) ; Heart (4-6 hours)
Some have no brain activity left. “When someone is brain dead, it means that the brain is no longer working in any capacity and never will again. Other organs, such as the heart, kidneys, or liver, can still work for a short time if the breathing machine is left in place, but when brain death is declared, it means the person has died.” (“Understanding Brain Death”). Brain death can happen from an accident in a car or plane. It is out of anyone’s control. Life support was made to help people. In most cases, it does help them and not let them depend on the machine. “The objective is to buy time for patients so that they can be treated for the underlying cause or able to recover on their own.” (“Life Support : Information and Ethics”). Some people may get put on life support because their organs are failing or they have trouble breathing on their own. Surgery can help them. Some might be simple procedures and others might become difficult transplants. With the help of the life support machines, hospitals can get you better