Euthanasia Flashcards
What is voluntary euthanasia?
When a person’s life is ended at their request in the case of the incurable or terminally ill.
What is non-voluntary euthanasia?
When a decision to die is made on behalf of the patient who is unable to make the decision for themselves.
What is passive euthanasia?
Passive euthanasia occurs when the patient dies because the medical professionals either don’t do something necessary to keep the patient alive, or when they stop doing something that is keeping the patient alive. eg) switch off life-support machines, disconnect a feeding tube, don’t carry out a life-extending operation, or don’t give life-extending drugs
What is active euthanasia?
Active euthanasia occurs when the medical professionals, or another person, deliberately do something that causes the patient to die eg) give a lethal injection
What are three examples of euthanasia cases?
Daniel James - a rugby player who was paralysed from the neck down after a rugby accident and his parents took him to Switzerland to help him end his life.
Tony Bland who was injured in the Hillsborough Stadium disaster and after a lengthy legal battle his life support was switched off. This was a significant case as it suggested that in extreme circumstance passive non-voluntary euthanasia is permissible.
Charlie Gard was an infant who was terminally ill and doctors at St Ormond’s disagreed with his parent’s decision to fly him to NYC for a treatment with a slim chance of working.
What is a persistent vegetative state?
When the body is kept alive but there is no brain function. However, research has begun to show that even some “brain dead” patients have a low-level brain function.
What is Natural Law’s response to the issue of euthanasia?
Natural Law says that everyone was made for a purpose to reflect the image of God and even if we are close to death we can do this so euthanasia in all forms is wrong. The primary precepts to preserve life and to live harmoniously can be used with ratio to suggest the secondary precept “Euthanasia is wrong”. If voluntary euthanasia was legalised then the elderly or the handicapped may feel they should volunteer to relieve the burden on their families or the hospital - this is not harmonious living. Lex followers may see all forms of euthanasia as wrong however Aquinas took an ius approach and would agree that keeping people alive who would have naturally died prolongs suffering. He, therefore, may have disagreed with active euthanasia but allowed a more proportional response of passive euthanasia in exceptional circumstances. Double effect may allow a lethal dose of drugs to alleviate pain as the intention was to prevent suffering but death was a by-product. Divine law also says “do not kill” and “choose life” which suggests only God can choose when a person dies. If state law contradicts divine or Natural Law it can be overridden and many followers of Natural Law are part of pro-life groups.
What are the strengths of Natural Law’s application to euthanasia?
+ Uphold the sanctity of life argument as even the elderly, handicapped, and terminally ill can reflect the image of God
+ Is proportional so puts the person first in exceptional circumstances
What are the weaknesses of Natural Law’s application to euthanasia?
- Peter Singer says the sanctity of life argument prolongs suffering and we should do what’s in the best interest of the person
- The weak sanctity of life argument still suggests we have no autonomy as our life belongs to God
- Through only using passive euthanasia in exceptional circumstances NL still prolongs suffering as many argue that active and passive are the same but passive just takes longer and is less kind
- NL is outdated as Aquinas wrote it when people were at the mercy of Nature but now people can be kept alive unnaturally
What is Situation ethics approach to euthanasia?
Fletcher thought that the only rule should be love as NL and the Bible are too legalistic. This means if a person is in great pain and has no quality of life the most loving thing is for them to die. Situation ethics is teleological as it is concerned with the most loving outcome. Fletcher also argues that the end justifies the means. With passive euthanasia, death may take a long time so active euthanasia may be more loving as it is quick and painless. Fletcher’s 4 working principles can be applied to euthanasia: pragmaticism, euthanasia allows a dignified death; relativism, euthanasia is neither right or wrong it depends; positivism, the faith you are doing a loving thing by stopping the pain; and personalism, as the person should be put before the ten commandments. Fletcher gave the example of sacrificial suicide. Fletcher said euthanasia is like death control as it gives people autonomy. He said the quality of life is better than the sanctity of life. He also was the president of the right to die club and wrote criteria for when a human being is a person.
What are the weaknesses of Situation ethic’s application to euthanasia?
- relies on us agreeing on what the most loving thing to do
What are the weaknesses of Situation ethic’s application to euthanasia?
- relies on us agreeing on what the most loving thing to do is but this is often difficult to see eg) Charlie Gard case
- Where do you draw the line around a situation?
What was Singer’s criteria for when a human being is a person?
- an understanding of time
- a grasp of past and present
- self-awareness
- minimal intelligence
- self-control
What does Hippocrates argue?
It would be wrong to do something to cause a patient to die but it would pointless treating someone beyond medical help.
What is James Rachel’s example?
He gives an example of a man hoping to inherit his nephew’s fortune when he dies to demonstrate the difference between active and passive euthanasia. Is there a difference between holding his nephew’s head under water and not saving his nephew who lies unconscious in the water? The law would say the former is worse but Rachel says both are morally unacceptable because it is a duty to preserve life.
