Final Exam Flashcards
Question 1 thesis
In my paper I will argue that buying and selling human body parts should be permitted as a last resource option for desperate buyers and sellers.
Question 1 two arguments for
The commodification of organs is justified for two main reasons: respect for the autonomy of the vendors, as well as the fact that the social contract theory requires consistency between the way we treat people of different socioeconomic classes.
Question 1 responses and replies
While some people object to the selling of organs because of worries about exploitation and the lack of informed consent, I will argue that instead of these being reasons to prohibit the organ trade, we simply need more regulation that will protect the vulnerable populations and ensure proper consent is given.
Question 1 definitions
Commodity: A kind of thing produced for use or sale, an article of commerce, an object of trade
Respect for autonomy: Respect the decision making capacities of autonomous persons; enable individuals to make well-reasoned choices for themselves
Exploitation: When one party takes advantage of another’s economic need to secure something for considerably less than its value
Informed consent: there are 4 main aspects to informed consent: competence, disclosure, understanding, voluntariness. Not allowed to be token consent. A violation to any of these renders the consent invalid
Question 2 thesis
In my paper I will argue that it is not ethically permissible to refuse to provide a referral for an abortion on the grounds of conscientious objection.
2 reasons for Question 2 thesis
Doctors have a duty to help their patients, as well as an obligation to respect the autonomy of pregnant persons, both of which prevent them from refusing to refer.
Question 2 objection and reply
While many of the doctors who object to referrals refuse because they do not wish to be complicit in the act of abortion, I will argue that this concern does not outweigh their duty to patient care.
Question 2 definitions
Conscientious objection: for reasons of conscience refuses to perform some action
Abortion: the intentional termination of pregnancy at any stage during the fetus’s gestational development
Respect for autonomy: Respect the decision making capacities of autonomous persons; enable individuals to make well-reasoned choices for themselves
4 norms from McLeod
Not abandoning patients
Respecting their autonomy
Honoring their trust
Being beneficient towards them
Question 3 thesis (including 2 reasons for)
In my paper I will argue that the proposed Surfaxin research trial in Bolivia was not ethically justified because of the use of a placebo group, as well as the fact that the research was not intended to help Bolivian’s after the study was conducted
2 objections to question 3
Without the placebo group however, the trial would have been conducted in North America or Europe instead of Bolivia, and even the infants in the placebo group were receiving a higher standard of care than what was common in the region
Response to question 3 objections
This mindset highlights the exploitation of the Bolivians, and even though the placebo group had better treatment than normal, they were knowingly withholding life-saving treatment, which cannot be ethically justified.
Question 3 definitions
Placebo: usually a sugar pill, seems to be a real treatment but actually is nothing – does not contain an active substance meant to affect health
Respiratory Distress Syndrome: babies born prematurely have underdeveloped lungs with inefficient surfactant and consequently their lungs are stiff and do not inflate easily. Can die unless we give them a drug that mimics surfactant while their lungs finish developing
Exploitation: When one party takes advantage of another’s economic need to secure something for considerably less than its value
