The Bio-Legal Issues Surrounding Physician Assisted Suicide Essays

The Bio-Legal Issues Surrounding Physician Assisted Suicide Essays The Bio-Legal Issues Surrounding Physician Assisted Suicide Paper The Bio-Legal Issues Surrounding Physician Assisted Suicide Paper A most troubling issue in the bio-legal discourse is that of the so-called ‘right-to-die,’ which continues to receive debate in current medical and legal consideration. The concept of euthanasia implies that the dignity of human life may be compromised by the affliction of terminal illness, intractable pain or an incapacity to function without artificial life-support systems. Under this pretense, we are suggested to have an entitlement to choose a dignified passing rather than a prolonged suffering. This is an incredibly complex issue though, subject to variation based upon one’s ethical, biological and philosophical understanding of any given medical case. Ultimately, the exploration here will suggest that there is, among other defenses, a legal basis for the defense of physician assisted suicide which denotes that a failure to allow such is tantamount to a failure to relieve suffering where such is the only means that might accomplish such and a failure to apply the proper regulatory oversight to standards precipitating physician assisted suicide. In contrast, the sanctity of human life has for centuries been considered an objective fact of universal rationality, with great intellectuals such as Plato decrying suicide and any enabling of the practice as both existing in contrast with our rights of self-determination. This thinker is joined by most established religions, broad swathes of society and most of the highest offices of American governance due to a sociologically crucial interest in the sanctity of human life. In the last two years or more of executive-led religious indoctrination, it is important that one’s moral background not become the driving force behind the formation of legislative backing though. There is a clear duality in the debate, where beneath an explicit layer of semantic and legislative wrangling, there is an enormous religious subtext which calls into question the effectiveness of the separation of Church and State, as defined in the Constitution. With conservative lawmakers such as Samuel Alito and John Roberts ascending to the Supreme Court bench in the last two years, there is a certain thrust away from bioethical progressivism. However, such a reality is in clear contrast to the well-established virtues of a pragmatic protection for the right to such a decision as euthanasia. At the very base of the philosophical impulses in providing medical care, as set forth in the Hippocratic oath, is the function of relieving illness, injury, suffering and pain. This is the perspective which provided foundation to a perspective which found legal support in the last decade and a half. In 1994, the Oregon legislature passed Measure 16 of the state’s pre-existent Death With Dignity Act. Thus, now, â€Å"in Oregon, US, only physician-assisted suicide is legal, and this began in 1997. † (Pasterfield, 450) Designed to protect and ensure the medical rights of the terminally ill, the measure was approved by a very slim majority through public referendum, establishing a standard by which physicians may assist in the termination of life for patients who desire an immediate cessation of pain due to intractable and fatal conditions without fear of legal reprisal. One of the bill’s key segments, section 127. 885, indicates that â€Å"no person shall be subject to civil or criminal liability or professional disciplinary action for participating in good faith compliance,† with the conditions set forth in the measure. (Oregon, 7) This is to indicate that for physicians adhering to the parameters allowing for the administering of life-suspending procedures as set forth in the legislation, the State of Oregon may take no retaliatory action. Such legislation would be the first of its kind in the United States, though it has yet to achieve any genuine penetration to precedent on the federal level. Still, the ‘right to death’ movement, which has gained greater notoriety in recent decades than ever before, is informed by the premise that it is within the Constitutional body of rights for an individual to decide to terminate one’s own life. The purpose of this initiative has been to proliferate entitlement and access, to those suffering from intractable pain or illness, to those that might help them achieve death with comfort and dignity. Its supporters are typically those aligned with civil liberties organizations such as the ACLU. Likewise, many in the medical community view this is as a natural right which should be accorded to all patients, fundamentally reflecting one of the most basic freedoms regarding one’s own life. This speaks to one perspective on the capacity of this legislation to alleviate personal pain and suffering for those contained within Oregon’s public healthcare system. The terms of the 1994 legislation are quite specific in their delineation of preconditions required for the administering of a lethal injection using a legally controlled substance. These include multiple levels of physician and witness approval concerning the patient’s physical and emotional state as well as a mandatory waiting period during which the patient is enabled to reflect on the decision before reaching a final resolution. The helps to shape its effect as one which is beneficial only to those patients desiring its parameters, thus expanding the medical options available to those suffering from terminal illness. The legal implication of this legislation would be highlighted during the mid-90’s with the high-profile focus on ethical considerations entering the courts. The issue of physician assisted suicide attained its highest degree of public acknowledgement with the media-embraced case of Michigan physician Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Developing his practice around the provision of assisted suicide for those suffering irreversibly from untreatable medical conditions, Kevorkian ignited public controversy, with many viewing him as a champion of a theretofore untested Constitutional right and others still labeling him a murderer. It was his very publicly visible philosophy of entitlement which caused the state of Michigan to pass legislation denying his right to the practice, as well as retracting his license to practice medicine. This would help authorities, in nothing less than Kevorkian’s fourth trial, to place him behind bars for manslaughter. This would be consistent with the prevailing legal appropriation of his practice. Following the prohibition of physician assisted suicide in Michigan, other states adapted a similar strategy, with important distinctions and regulations being framed around the debate. For instance, a 1998 Supreme Court decision held a Washington State decision making illegal physician assisted suicide, likewise helping to clarify additional euthanasia related issues, concluding that it was lawful to end life-support systems even separate from the subject of physician assisted suicide. (Meisel, 1) For those in the ‘right to die’ camp, this would demonstrate a fear that prohibition against such practices as Kevorkian’s would undo the right for those on life-support, in a persistent vegetative state, to cease artificial life-functions. Indeed, this fear would prove somewhat justified by the celebrated recent case of Terri Schiavo. Florida Governor Jeb Bush intervened on behalf of the comatose patient’s parents to prevent the vegetative woman’s husband from having her feeding tube removed, which would have terminated her life. The governor offered a brief statement that indicated what he perceived as the legal crux of the matter, assessing that the â€Å"potential for irrevocable harm to Terri Shiavo is real and imminent. Even an erroneous decision not to terminate the withdrawal of sustenance results merely in the maintenance of the status quo. †(2). For precedent, the governor cited a court decision that captures current legal perspective in Florida on the debate: . . . the possibility of subsequent developments such as advancements in medical science, the discovery of new evidence regarding the patient’s intent, changes in the law, or simply the unexpected death of the patient despite the administration of life sustaining treatment at least create the potential that a wrong decision will be mitigated. An erroneous decision to withdraw life-sustaining treatment, however is not subject to correction. Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Dept. of Public Health, 497 U. S. 261, 283 (1990). † (Bush, 2). This legal intervention does not exist in the vacuum of constitutional law, as evidenced above. Instead, it casts a broad net of views on the matter, drawing the serious medical dissensions to such a terminal commitment into the debate. One of the primary impetuses for allowing the practice is the claim that a patient who is suffering from intractable and ongoing pain is in a state of such reduced quality of life that death is the only humane option. However, according to the state of Florida as represented by its governor’s actions, there are relatively few conditions of this nature which cannot be treated by current standards in pain medication. Still, it is particularly visible when one considers states such as Colorado and Oregon, that the governor’s behavior would be contradicted by legal standard. â€Å"According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, many states. . . follow the Uniform Determination of Death Act, drafted and endorsed by the American Medical Association in 1980. That act sets the ‘irreversible loss of cardiorespiratory or whole-brain functions according to medical standards of practice’ as the standard for declaring death. † (Auge, 1) The Bush administration’s conservative agenda has helped to return this issue to the legal spotlight. Though the current presidential administration has attempted on several occasions to undermine the Oregon legislation through its courts, the euthanasia of these individuals remains legal under state law. As recently as January of 2006, the Supreme Court upheld the still pertinent Oregon State law permitting the practice. In a 6-3 decision, senior justice Antonin Scalia offered the dissenting opinion, arguing that â€Å"the federal government has long used its powers ‘for the purpose of protecting public morality,’ and that Congress granted the executive branch authority to prevent assisted suicide. † (Christie, 1) It should therefore be evident that the intention of legal and constitutional efforts to provide protection for euthanasia is not to increase its implementation but to find appropriate parameters within which to protect the freedom of choice. The movement which favors an institutionalization of clearly defined euthanasia laws is guided by the need for a safer, better regulated and more readily available accessibility to the option. Bibliography: Auge, Karen. (2004). Deaths border now less defined. Denver: Denver Post. Bush, Jeb. (2004). Appellant, Case. : SC04-925. Schiavo v. the State of Florida. Supreme Court of the State of Florida. Christie, Tim. (Jan. 2006). Assisted Suicide Upheld. Eugene, OR: The Register Guardian. Keown, John. (2002). Euthanasia, Ethics and Public Policy: An Argument Against Legislation. University of Cambridge Press. Meisel, Alan. (2004). The Right to Die: The Law-of-life Decisionmaking. Aspen Publishers. Pasterfield, Diana Wilkinson, Clare. (2006). GPs’ views on changing the law on physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia, and willingness to prescribe or inject lethal drugs. British Journal of General Practice, Vol. 56, No. 527. Olevitch, Barbara A. (2002). Protecting Psychiatric Patients and Others From the Assisted-Suicide Movement. Praeger. Oregon. (2008). Death With Dignity Act 1994. The Oregon State Website. Online at oregon. gov/DHS/ph/pas/docs/statute. pdf. Young, Robert (2002) Voluntary Euthanasia. Palo Alto: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Online at http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/euthanasia-voluntary

Princeton and Harvard Fail to Lead the Way on Elimination of Early Admissions

Princeton and Harvard Fail to Lead the Way on Elimination of Early Admissions A New York Times article reported on February 24, 2011 that Princeton and Harvard have chosen to reinstate their early admissions programs.   Apparently they weren’t comfortable sticking out like sore thumbs in the Ivy League. As reported in The Daily Princetonian, Princeton’s President Shirley Tilghman had this to say about the decision: â€Å"We have carefully reviewed our single admission program every year, and we have been very pleased with how it has worked†¦Ã‚   But in eliminating our early program four years ago, we hoped other colleges and universities would do the same, and they haven’t.† This decision highlights how much the Ivy Leagues are bedfellows.   Harvard made its decision first, and although Tilghman claims that Princeton might have reinstated early admissions even if Harvard had not, Princetons decision was clearly heavily influenced by Harvards. Diversity Schmersity It is well-known that applying early decision markedly boosts applicants’ chances for admission, and that early applicant pools tend to be higher income and less diverse than the regular admission pool.   The initial reason for eliminating early admissions back in 2006 was the assessment that early admissions had an overall homogenizing effect on collegiate populations. Princeton’s Tilghman remains hopeful: â€Å"I think there’s a lot of confidence among the staff at the admission office - and I have to take that confidence pretty seriously - that we are going to be able to sustain the gains that we’ve seen,† Tilghman said. â€Å"I’m cautiously optimistic that we will be able to sustain the gains.† Why oh Why? I wonder what the impetus was for Princeton and Harvards choice.   The most obvious possibility is that they were losing top candidates to other schools with early admissions programs.   Isnt it interesting how the NYT, Princetonian, and AP articles dont mention that? Skeptics will likely surmise that there must be some financial gain for Princeton and Harvard in reversing their 2006 decision.   Although this might be the case, there is some mitigating news. The Associated Press reports that Harvard is increasing financial aid in the face of its 4% tuition increase, and that it has pledged improvements in minority recruiting.   I’m sure there will be many people keeping a close eye on the results of the return to early admissions, and I hope Tilghman’s prediction is on the money. Category:College AdmissionsBy Brenda BernsteinFebruary 28, 2011

Health Care Continuum Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health Care Continuum - Assignment Example The concept is manifest in the application of life support machines for the extreme sick cases. Fayetteville, North Carolina has sufficient long-term care options including outsourcing of the health services. Additionally, the health centers in Fayetteville, North Carolina have acquired sophisticated medical equipment to cater for the long term health care services. The other option the region has is the offering of free guidance and counseling services because some terminal illnesses are caused by ignorance of the patients. The continuity health care services, which will be required in my community, include the provision of diagnostic equipment and proper prescription of drugs in order to promote prompt recuperation. Austine and Wetle’s claim that Mental Health Services are a Combination of Services is true because the delivery of medical services can never be unilateral. The health of a person is complex, thus it requires much attention from the medical practitioners. This initiative requires coordination of many health experts in various specializations. The recuperation of a patient results from concerted effort of more than one medical practitioner. In this regard, the continuum health care requires the service of many health care providers in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the health care sector. The integrated delivery systems ensure sound delivery of continuum health care. The continuum of healthcare ensures that there is integration of medical services in order to achieve efficiency and quality of the healthcare service. The headache of the integrated delivery system is the fragmented American health care system. According to Halloran, and Lowenstein (2010), there is a need for the integration of the health care in order to have a regulated health care system. In this regard, health care resources will be utilized for the welfare of the citizens. Additionally, the integration of the services will allow

Organizational Policies on Sexual Harassment Research Paper

Organizational Policies on Sexual Harassment - Research Paper Example The research paper "Organizational Policies on Sexual Harassment" talks about the sexual harassment, a chief vice that is facing modern organizations. Since sexual harassment can cripple the company’s operation and affluence, it is imperative finding the underlying cause of the quandary, addressing fit to the staff members and making clear and plausible policies, rules and tenets governing the behavior of the workers. Therefore, very adept decisions in a meeting with all staff members ought to be addressed and clear guidelines put forward. Therefore, the following paragraphs espouse the various approaches to tackle the setback of sexual harassment in the specific sections to avoid pitfalls that could possibly result into lame operations and poor performance by the company. The organization should stipulate a policy discouraging and barring sexual harassment and severe penalties failure to compliance. The policies should be clear and fighting malicious accusations and deliberate misconduct on the part of sexual harassment cases. The human resource officials ought to inform the members of staff on the suitable procedures in the pressing of grievances when an individual is harassed sexually. Through an array of awareness and teaching tactics, the organization ought to treat the employees to intensive teaching and training on intelligence concerning the problem at hand and how to react accordingly. Additionally, the department heads to identify any hidden cases should conduct surveys.

Explore the benifits and chalenges o conducting multi-paradiam Essay

Explore the benifits and chalenges o conducting multi-paradiam research - Essay Example Thomas Kuhn, who is known for the discussing of meaning ‘paradigm’ in his famous book  The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, characterized paradigm as â€Å"an integrated cluster of substantive concepts, variables and problems attached with corresponding methodological approaches and tools†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Ã‚  (p.43).  Kuhn also specified the questions, which should be clarified within a paradigm to consider it as a valid base for a scientific research. A paradigm has to define what should be studied, what question and how should be asked, and also, which rules the researcher should follow to interpret obtained results. The notion of paradigm considers as the broadest unit of consensus, which serves to differentiate one scientific community from another. It appears to be a set of principles and axioms that relates to research process on the stage of assessment of a problem up to its solution.  Paradigms define and correlate theories, methods and instruments, accept ed within a scientific research. Analyzing the main paradigms, dominating in modern science, such as positivism, post positivism, critical theory, and constructivism, Guba and Lincoln (1994), represented their opinion about the role of paradigms, their assumptions, and the implications of those assumptions for research. â€Å"Paradigms define for the [researcher] what it is they are about, and what falls within and outside the limits of legitimate [research]† (Guba and Lincoln, 1994, p. 108). The authors states that the basic beliefs that define a particular research paradigm may be summarized by the responses given to three fundamental questions: the ontological question (what is the form and nature of reality), the epistemological question (what is the nature of the relationship between a researcher and the object of research), and the methodological question (how can the inquirer go about finding out whatever he/ she believes can be known)  (pp. 105-117). From this aspec t, we will analyze some of the well- known paradigms such as positivism and critical theory. Positivism. French philosopher August Comte (1798–1857) was the initiator of positivist paradigm, based on the philosophical ideas of observation and reasoning as the main ways of understanding reality and human behavior. According to August Comte, true knowledge is based on experience of senses and can be obtained by observation and experiment. Positivistic thinkers adopted his scientific method for knowledge generation. The main postulates of the positivist paradigm consist in understanding of nature as an objective, true reality, which is governed by unchangeable natural laws. Nature has its stable, pre-existing patterns and order that can be discovered. Positivism considers human nature to be described from the behaviorist approach, asserting the external factors play the main role in the formation of the similar specific behavior of everyone, who has been influenced the same obje ctive factors. Accurate and certain, knowledge should be described in a systematic way, and verify hypotheses that can be regarded as facts or laws. The role of research is uncovering the natural laws of reality, scientifically explaining, predicting and controlling phenomena. A researcher have to be objective, independent from influencing the subject of research, and eliminate any bias or subjective values within research. The main methods of research are empirical and experimental, structured observation, quantification or measurement. The results of research consider true, if

Green Buildings Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Green Buildings - Essay Example Conventional use of energy requires exploitation of resources such as coal in the production of electricity, use of hydropower among other energy sources that have been in use for many years. Consequently, the use of the above sources of energy in buildings leads to massive environmental pollution and environmental degradation. For instance, the use of coal to produce electricity results in massive emission of carbon dioxide and environmental degradation in areas were cola has to be mined. As a result, the entire process leads to land and environmental degradation among other negative effects. To reduce environmental degradation and pollution from emissions, buildings are designed and constructed with features that minimise overreliance on conventional energy by relying more on natural lighting and energy conservation designs. There are various standards of grading buildings on a scale, which reflects the extent of energy efficiency in such buildings. In other words, the more efficie nt a building is, the more green such a building is, with several certification bodies coming up to rate and certify energy and resource efficient buildings. The research aims at investigating different requirements before certifying a building as green and the requirements that a building has to meet to warrant the green title. A few case studies of highly rated green buildings will be analysed with respect to the perspective of energy and resources efficiency, and how such buildings contribute to environmental sustainability. Moreover, the dissertation will seek to investigate different aspects that are used to rate these buildings and the different ratings used by the recognized certification bodies with close investigation of implications of building rating in addition to the current market response to green construction. Though the concept of green building dates back to the early 90s when groups advocating for sustainable

Building Services system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Building Services system - Essay Example Distribution of electric power usually entails a complete distribution network. A complete distribution network entails several components including, a distribution substation, primary distribution feeder, a transformer, distributor and the service mains (Fink and Carroll, 2013). The transmitted electric power controlled in substations for primary distribution and use. The distribution system will take the model shown below: This power is then fed to the distribution transformer via the primary distribution feeders. The system will use a voltage of 2,400V. The distribution system to use in this project will take the form shown in the diagram below: The type of distribution system will be ring main electrical distribution system. This is preferred to the radial distribution system in that in case of a transformer failure or feeder failure, power is not interrupted. This is because one ring network of distributors gets power from several feeders. This implies in case one feeder fails to work, the others will still supply power and there would be no power interruptions. Addition this system consists of various section isolates at distinct points in the system. If a problem occurs in any of the isolates, then the others are available to supply power. This system will appear as shown in the figure below For emergency purposes the power system will include an independent reserve power source which will function in case of failure of the primary power source. This power source should be able to function for several hours before the main power supply is rectified. This alternative source of power will consist of an additional independent source of power complete with its independent controls ((Nasar and Unnewehr, 2012). This can be in form of engine driven generators and in this case they will have a voltage of 500 kW. The power system will consist of cables made of copper and aluminum