Assisted Suicide by Physician for the Terminally Ill Moral or Not - Free Essay Example

The notion of the right to assisted suicide is oftentimes a controversial topic surrounding the medical industry in the United States. One side of the spectrum will argue that assisted suicide is unjustifiable because by definition, death in itself is an inevitability, not a right. On the contrary, the other side of the spectrum claims that assisted suicide by aid of physician is an ethical right to a patients free exercise of autonomy. Therers a multitude of factors that play into the right to assisted suicide. My argument is that so long as the terminally patient within their own mind is psychologically stable and that all other potential life-saving measures have already been instilled, then it should lawfully be within someoners rights to take their own life by palliative, physician induced suicide. In terms is the United States, only eight states have legalized assisted suicide to some degree but within strict regulation. The issuing of a assisted suicide procedure within these states is still frowned upon and is only admitted for patients with a prognosis of six months or less to live. The problem with this is that being terminally ill is not only a physical battle of attrition but even more so a mental war within oneself no matter how long your prognosis is. In essence, pain and discomfort is not the sole reason for these patients wanting to take their lives. As Doctor Teresa Yao explains in her article Can We Limit a Right to Physician-Assisted Suicide?, the three most commonly answered reasons for seeking the assisted suicide procedure is because the patients have either loss their dignity, they have lost their own autonomy, or they feel like they simply cant do the things in life that made life enjoyable anymore. (Yao 5) The objective of the majority of these patients is t o relieve themselves of their lost sense of purpose. Why would we as a country only honor what these inevitably dead people have to say when the prognosis is six months or less? The physical pain seen visually to people oftentimes undermines the overall spiritual and mental anguish that these patients are going through. The sixth months to live laws are completely arbitrary. The sole reason these lawfully put in place is to appease the public side that opposes the notion all together. The argument that Doctor Yao is implying that United States as a whole was founded on the principle of autonomy. (Yao 6) What this means is essentially being prideful and living the life that you want to live. Why is it that once you become terminally ill but still have more than six months to live, you as an inevitably dead patient have lost your right to autonomy? We a nation preach the notion of autonomy in all aspects of life. Telling a terminally ill patient that they dont have the right to die peacefully at all or stipulating that a patient with a s ix month prognosis does completely undermines the principle all together. The reality of the United States is that the majority of the vocal public opposes physician assisted suicide all together and will only resiliently support the procedure in extreme circumstances such as disabilities or a six month prognosis. The right to die can and should be included in the right to receiving an assisted-suicide procedure no matter what the prognosis or if they are disabled. This in itself is contradictory and I happen to disagree with any form of opposition of the right to this procedure. The other side of the spectrum on this ideology will argue that a persons right to die should be rejected no matter what the circumstances because the notion of death in itself is an inevitability, not a right guaranteed to one as an individual. Doctor Sylvia Dianne in her article Euthanasia and assisted suicide; There is an alternative. dives into the argument of the world being universally opposed to the notion of assisted suicide and for logical reasoning as to why. The first ideology displayed by Doctor Dianne is that the majority of participants in Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism are unanimously opposed to the motives for assisted suicide. Also, studies show that Atheists and Agnostics alike tend to question morality of the process due to the universally accepted belief about the sanctity of human life despite religiously charged influence. (Dianne 25) To these four religions, suffering is a form of overcoming, displaying resilience and ultimately bringing about th e best in people. Euthanasia is in essence, implying that suffering no longer has a meaning or purpose behind it. Some of the world greatest literature, art, and music has been brought into existence because of suffering. Christians oftentimes claim that it was the unjust suffering of Christ that ultimately allowed redemption for the everyday sinners on Earth. After arguing in respect to worldwide religions and cultures, Doctor Dianne researched the issue of assisted-suicide from the medical perspective. It turns out that from the very beginnings of medically involved times till now, the sanctioning of killing patients is and never will be acceptable. Also, euthanasia practices voluntary or not are in violation of historical codes birthed in medical ethics. (Dianne 30) The explanation behind this research is that the grand majority of medical professionals feel that the practice of voluntary assisted suicide is hypocritical and goes against exactly what it is the medical professiona l was trained to do. What the author is insinuating is that euthanasia needs to be an absolute last resort option and rather than jumping to the conclusion of termination so rapidly, Doctors need to exhaust every avenue of potential life saving treatment first so that questioning of physician assisted suicide is never brought into question in the first place. As a practicing Christian myself, I think that Doctor Dianne did a good job at arguing in favor of not only Christianity but also the three other most commonly practiced religions worldwide in Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. When debating a topic that is correlated between science and religion I feel like this article remained fairly unbiased in that Doctor Sylvia was successful in bringing about the fact that both the medical industry and religions alike are opposed to physician assisted suicide in some way, shape, or form. It is definitely important to respect the morality and views of people when considering the topic of assisted suicide. Religions and people in general claim that human life has inherent value and that euthanasia isnt something that any medical professional wants to be responsible for. These are important variables to take into account but, I also feel that sometimes it is important to challenge such views when it comes to terminally ill patients. I personally do nt see euthanasia as a last resort option. I see it as a form of immediate relief which is something medical professionals are trained to do metaphorically speaking. I also greatly oppose the argument of suffering no longer having meaning. Enduring a life of hardships and perseverance is something that brings about the best in people. Lifestyle hardships are far fetched from someone on the verge of dying, potentially going through excruciating pain and suffering. There really needs to be a deviation between the two in the eyes of someone arguing in favor of their religiously innate ideas. I now want to revert back as to why physician assisted suicide is justifiable. Doctor Timothy Quill is actually a practicing medical professional himself and wrote his article Physicians Should Assist in Suicide When It Is Appropriate. In order to explain that in many cases, assisting suicide by a physician is actually ethically justifiable. Early on Doctor Quill claims that assisted suicide shouldnt be considered for a terminally ill patient until all aspects of excellent palliative medical care has been induced. (Quill 58) This correlates directly to the argument displayed by religiously activated Doctor Dianne in the previous article examined. After laying this foundation, Doctor Quill explains that legalization of physician assisted suicide will absolutely does not undermine improvements in palliative care and hospice. The idea for terminally ill patients having the option of the procedure is potentially a good safety blanket in that it brings the patients more tolerance and resi lience to suffering knowing that there is that option if need be. After being moderate on the idea, Doctor Quill then discusses the autonomy argument similar to that of Doctor Yao. Autotomy is essentially the greatest factor played into the seeking of euthanasia, and understandably so. He talks by personal experience witnessing terminally ill patients living a life of no dignity and pride while continuously piling on medical bills and from what he has seen itrs absolutely demoralizing to people and their families. (Quill 63) What Doctor Quill is insisting is that why let your family see you suffering and why be a financial burden when death is inevitable sooner than later? So long as the practices are not in secret and are repeatedly pronounced to the patient and family for a formal consent, then therers really no justification as to why this practice is harsh or immoral again, this is once all other avenues have been exhausted. This is unfortunately a harsh reality that some families have to experience when it comes to terminal illnesses however, there is much truth value behind what he is claiming. The practice of physician assisted suicide indeed needs to be a consensual procedure with the patient having the ultimate authority so long as they are mentally competent. I like how Doctor Quill discussed how demoralizing living with a terminal illness is. Where I somewhat disagree with him is when he relates to Doctor Dianne on stressing the importance of exhausting every potential life saving avenue. I would say once diagnosed as terminally ill it is crucial to let the patients and their families demonstrate their own choices and let them decide what they want to do. Even with assistance from insurance treatments can become a financial burden as well as a waste of resources for patients who arent terminally ill. The last article I researched by Doctor D. Etienne de Villiers was called May Christians Request Medically Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia? This article gives the perspective from an average American Christian as to why the practice is not ethical in accordance to the Bible and traditional American values in general. The general Christian belief system entails that the terminally ill are to live both morally and loyal to god until their death. This, as well has remaining prejudice against the termination of any human life for any reason. (Villiers 1) Another influential ideology as to why Christians are so hesitant when asked about assisted suicide even for the terminally ill is because the Bible promotes absolute prohibition. Doctor Villiers explains this by going on to discuss the Sixth Commandment Thou Shalt Not Kill. Although quite vague, the modern interpretation of the sixth commandment is to value human life as sacred. The journey of life for a Christian, even when terminally ill, is to essentially trust the sustained care and support of God no matter what the circumstances are. (Villiers 4) The main idea here is to put the illness in the hands of God and let it play out the way that it was intended too. In other words, a physician has no place telling a person when their time on Earth is up. It is Godrs will as to when your time comes. Generally what Doctor Villiers is establishing is that physician assisted suicide is considered blasphemy by the majority of Christianrs and that needs to be respected by the medical industry when cases are made in favor of the practice. I truly have mixed emotions on this article. Although I am a practicing Christian, I think itrs important to note that when someone is diagnosed as terminally ill it can be inferred God has already willed that death will take place for that very person. I feel as though this article was objective at trying to bring about an understanding from the religious perspective on the issue and I think that Doctor de Villiers stayed fairly neutral and within certain boundaries even though she showed religious biases in her argument structure. Biblically speaking, I can agree and understand the notion that the body is somewhat like a temple and is to be taken care of at all times. Where I come to disagree is at what point is the body worth trying to save anymore? If your soul truly is eternal and the body has wasted away to near death then maybe itrs time to surrender and let your soul move on. This article was backed with Biblical evidence however I feel much of this article was more speculati on rather than research. The source proved to be effective in further adding to the notion that we as nation need to appease all sides of the spectrum and witness who displays these antagonistic views and why. In conclusion, the research that I have performed for this paper has taught me that the majority of the world is unanimously opposed to the notion of physician assisted suicide for reasons tied to religion, ethics, and morality. These multitude of explanations cannot not be ignored and should always be considered when trying to promote such a procedure. Although the opposition create a solid counterargument, the benefits of physician assisted suicide at least to me, outweigh the negatives. For this very reason, my argument remains that so long as the terminally patient within their own mind is psychologically stable and that all other potential life-saving measures have already been instilled, then it should lawfully be within someoners rights to take their own life by palliative, physician induced suicide.

Developing Mixed Environments Of 802.1x And Non 802.1x...

More commonly, switches from different manufacturers are inconsistent in the way they must be configured to support 802.1X, particularly in how they handle mixed environments of 802.1X and non-802.1X endpoints. This and other factors make initial configuration and ongoing management of 802.1X in wired LANs very resource intensive — and therefore expensive. Wired LANs also tend to support a greater variety of legacy endpoints, many of which do not support 802.1X supplicant software. The number of non-802.1X endpoints in wired LANs often exceeds 802.1X-capable ones. As mentioned above, it is challenging to configure different switches (particularly in multivendor networks) to handle a mix of both 802.1X and non- 802.1X endpoints. The†¦show more content†¦Examples include devices such as those used for physical security in many facilities, including surveillance cameras, ID card readers, entry keypads and the like. Various industries such as manufacturing, retail, healthcare, energy and many others support unique types of endpoints in their networks for which 802.1X supplicant software is not available. In many environments, non-802.1X endpoints can far outnumber 802.1X-capable ones. As a result, a significant challenge for implementing 802.1X in many networks involves what to do about all the non-802.1X endpoints and how to handle network connectivity for those devices. There are options and workarounds, but each one involves compromise in terms of network security and/or management complexity. [callout box]  » OPTIONS FOR HANDLING NON-802.1X ENDPOINTS †¢ Deny All (not realistic!) †¢ Whitelist All (not secure!) †¢ MAC Authentication Bypass (doable, but manually intensive) [end of callout box] One option (though seldom feasible) is to simply deny network access to all non-802.1X endpoints. For most organizations this is really not an option since many of the non-802.1X endpoints are critical to business operations. Machines on a manufacturing floor, cash registers in a retail store, heart monitors and other patient care devices in a hospital all must be allowed on the network. So denying access

Drugs, Legal And Illegal - 1508 Words

People use drugs, legal and illegal, because their lives are intolerably painful or dull† said Wendell Berry. The same could be said with a toxic organic compound named Morphine. Morphine is white, crystalline and odorless which contain 17 carbon, 19 hydrogen atoms, 1 nitrogen atom and 3 oxygen. (C17H19NO3) Under organic compounds, it’s classified in the â€Å"True Alkaloid† group as the nitrogen is organized in a heterocycle and originated from amino acid. Morphine are produced through an extraction from plants like â€Å"Papaver Somniferous† then processed or produced synthetically for medication and recreational purposes. Firstly, morphine is an analgesic opioid that exists in tablets or solution form and could be consumed through swallowing,†¦show more content†¦The binding could only occur in the receptors active site if the size, shape and charge of the morphine’s meet the requirement of the receptor. Once the match is identified, the following binding process would take place. The flat benzene ring in morphine would fit securely in the flat surface of the receptor’s active site to allow the rest of the molecule to fall in place easily. The adjacent carbon atoms would fit into a nearby groove, while the nitrogen atom would attach to the negatively charged group receptor, hence joining the two together. After the binding occurred, the morphine would be able to block the sending of the painful information from the pre-synaptic neuron on the nociceptor. This is because, it caused a reactionary changed in the cell which blocks its ability to produces the substance that causes the feeling of pain during and/or after an operation and injury. On the other hand, despite the medical benefits mentioned above, morphine is an addictive drug which a number of individuals in the current society misuse or abuse it for recreational purpose. These addiction and dependency could be caused by genetics, environment but most importantly, the change in brain and chemical structure. Like other opioids, morphine addiction could be inherited from previous generations and therefore, the ones who had relatives that is a current or past morphine

Cigarettes Addiction and Product Dangers Essay Example For Students

Cigarettes Addiction and Product Dangers Essay It is clear that businesses have an obligation to inform their customers about their products ingredients and dangers. Looking at the case of Rose Cipollone we see that she was a heavy smoker. Her doctors had to remove part of her right cancerous lung and informed her that she had to quit smoking. Unfortunately, she was addicted. Her doctors removed the rest of her lung that year and she finally quit smoking. She then sued the Liggett Group, the makers of the cigarettes she smoked. The lawsuit charged that the company knew of the link between cancer and smoking in the early 1940s. The company was found innocent of conspiring with other tobacco companies to hide the dangers of cigarette smoking but guilty on the grounds of falsely claiming its products were safe. However, things have changed. It is not 1940 anymore, when people were ignorant about the dangers of smoking. Tobacco companies now have Surgeon General warnings on cigarette packs. Unless they have been living under a rock, the general public should have been exposed to enough information by this time when it comes to cigarettes and addiction. Nicotine information is but a click away. Tobacco companies should no longer have the obligation to warn their customers, except if a new ingredient is added, in which case they should be notified. No one is saying get rid of the Surgeon General warnings, but enough is enough! If a person wants to smoke 3 packs of cigarettes a day, then that is their choice; tobacco companies should not be held responsible. Let us examine the hype surrounding the supposed danger and addition of nicotine. The Food and Drug Administration tells us that nicotine (the addictive drug found in cigarettes) is just as addictive as cocaine and should be illegal.Much of the rhetoric of the anti-smoking movement seeks to demonize tobacco smokers as nicotine addicts. In the past, of course, the term addict has been generally applied only to mind-altering drugs, e.g., heroin and cocaine. Even alcohol, which is mind-altering, is not generally referred to as additive. So, the argument is one of semantics. If nicotine is addictive, so are chocolate candies, pies and cakes, etc. Indeed, if addiction is defined as dependence upon some chemical, everyone is addicted, to air! Nicotine and cocaine are two different things. They may be just as addictive as each other but they certainly do not produce the same effect. Let us take a closer look at the properties of nicotine.Nicotine is a chemical, C10H 14N 2, which is found in the tobacco plant. Anti-smokers are quick to point out that pure nicotine is a poison, used as a pesticide. And its true that pure nicotine (a colorless, odorous liquid) is poisonous. What that means is that to kill a 180-lb man, hed have to drink about 80 mg of the stuff. Many other common substances, however, also have minimum lethal doses. According to the same source, ingesting a gram of caffeine is fatal.Most of the nicotine in tobacco is lost in the pr ocess of smoking. Only a little finds its way into the smokers bloodstream. That small quantity may account for some of the beneficial effects of smoking, e.g., improved mental concentration. Strangely, fine Havana cigars, when they were available, contained only 2% nicotine. If, in fact, nicotine is the reason why people smoke, it seems strange that people would pay enormous amounts of money for Havana cigars, which contain so little nicotine. (Colby, Chapter 11). Nicotine is quite different from cocaine. Here are most of the effects of cocaine:The effects of any drug depend on several factors: The amount taken at one time. The users past drug experience The manner in which the drug is taken The circumstances under which the drug is taken (the place, the users psychological and emotional stability, the presence of other people, the simultaneous use of alcohol or other drugs, etc.). Cocaines short-term effects appear soon after a single dose and disappears within a few minutes or ho urs. Taken in small amounts (up to 100 mg), cocaine usually makes the user feel euphoric, energetic, talkative, and mentally alert especially to the sensations of sight, sound, and touch. It can also temporarily dispel the need for food and sleep. Paradoxically, it can make some people feel contemplative, anxious, or even panic-stricken. Some people find that the drug helps them perform simple physical and intellectual tasks more quickly; others experience just the opposite effect.Physical symptoms include accelerated heartbeat and breathing, and higher blood pressure and body temperature. Large amounts (several hundred milligrams or more) intensify users high, but may also lead to bizarre, erratic, and violent behavior. These users may experience tremors, vertigo, muscle twitches, paranoia, or, with repeated doses, a toxic reaction closely resembling amphetamine poisoning. Physical symptoms may include chest pain, nausea, blurred vision, fever, muscle spasms, convulsions, and coma . Death from a cocaine overdose can occur from convulsions, heart failure, or the depression of vital brain centers controlling respiration.With repeated administration over time, users experience the drugs long-term effects. Restlessness, extreme excitability, insomnia, and paranoia and eventually hallucinations and delusions gradually displace euphoria. These conditions, clinically identical to amphetamine psychosis and very similar to paranoid schizophrenia, disappear rapidly in most cases after cocaine use is ended.While many of the physical effects of heavy continuous use are essentially the same as those of short-term use, the heavy user may also suffer from mood swings, paranoia, loss of interest in sex, weight loss, and insomnia. Chronic cocaine snorting often causes stuffiness, runny nose, eczema around the nostrils, and a perforated nasal septum. Users who inject the drug risk not only verdosing but also infections from unsterile needles and hepatitis or AIDS (acquired im mune deficiency syndrome) from needles shared with others. Severe respiratory tract irritation has been noted in some heavy users of cocaine free base.How can anyone suggest to the American public that cocaine and nicotine are equally dangerous, damaging and addictive? While they are both allegedly addictive that is where the similarity ends, because the effects of cocaine abuse are rapid and more damaging to more body systems that anything that nicotine could ever produce.Further, if cocaine is illegal and then tobacco is illegal then you might as well make alcohol illegal again too. In fact alcohol abuse is much more similar to cocaine abuse in that it affects major body systems rather quickly and can produce mental illnesses, hallucinations, etc. As Colby said, If nicotine is addictive, so are chocolate candies, pies and cakes, etc. So, many things are harmful and addictive but people do it knowing the consequences. Companies are just trying to run a business. If you buy you buy. I dont see companies shoving lit cigarettes in peoples mouths. Sure, they advertise but its a business and they need to make their money somehow. Companies need to do whats best for the company. They should not be blamed for other peoples addictions since in the end people do what they want to do. As I stated previously, if someone wants to smoke 3 packs a day then so be it. Companies should not be held accountable. But why arent we trying to make alcohol illegal? The answer is simple: Because the government is making money off of it, plain and simple. Not like in the case of nicotine where the government is losing money paying farmers not to plant tobacco and trying to persuade them to plant other things. The government, in its efforts to stop subsidizing the tobacco industry has resorted to great lengths to exercise its political powers in order to force tobacco companies to allegedly exercise corporate social responsibility, knowing full well that smoking is not a societal ill. It is not an issue that affects society at large, such as pollution or other environmental issues which the government has a full right to interfere in, as it affects all its citizens. As amply illustrated in previous commentaries, it exercises its political might through agencies it controls, such as the FDA to demonize tobacco smokers. We see ever day how the media is used to whip up the mob mentality about the evils of smoking, the dangers to our children, etc.Fredman said it best when he indicated there is only one social responsibility of business to use its resources and engages in activities designed to increase its profits, so long as it stays within the rules of the game which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud. (Fredman 432, Chapter 7) Tobacco companies have been playing within the rules. Its time the government stopped trying to change the rules just to try and stop what they started. Government should have never gotten into the bu siness in general of subsidizing farmers, regardless of the product. If there was no demand for the product, then it stops being sold, plain and simple. This is how it should be. This is what the open market was designed to do.Instead of pressuring the tobacco companies to exercise social responsibility lets propose to the US government that it exercise some governmental responsibility. Stop trying to circumvent the national democratic system of trade just to please parties with special interests. Stop subsidizing tobacco and let the chips fall where they may. Put our tax dollars into real societal issues that affect us all and act like the government by the people and for the people which we, as an American society, have a right to expect it to be.BIBLIOGRAPHY/REFERENCEShttp://www.lcolby.com/ Lauren A. Colby, In Defense of Smokers,Version 2.0 Chapter 11: Is Nicotine Addictive? (c) 1996 http://www.arf.org/isd/pim/cocaine.html Food and Drug Administration, Facts About Cocaine Copyrig ht ARF 1995http://www.arf.org/isd/pim/cocaine.html Food and Drug Administration, Drug Class: Central Nervous System Stimulants Copyright ARF 1995The Colombia University College of Physicians and Surgeons Complete Home Medical Guide on CD Rom, 1995, Softkey Multimedia Inc. MULTIPEDIA copyright 1995The Funk ; Wagnalls New Encyclopedia on CD Rom, 1992-1997 Softkey Multimedia Inc. INFOPEDIA copyright 1995, 1995, 1997The Merriam-Websters Medical Desk Dictionary on CD Rom, Softkey Multimedia Inc. 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