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PAMANTASAN NG LUNGSOD NG MAYNILA

(University of the City of Manila)

Intramuros, Manila

COLLEGE OF NURSING

Paula Nicole Anne Marin

BSN II I

ETHICS

Prof. Lester O. Camacho

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If Gods the Game that

Were Playing

The weight of pain, hopelessness and suffering cannot be neatly summarized on a page

as statistics. These are the visceral truths that a terminally-ill patient experiences and

what his or her relatives, as well as some healthcare providers, can witness first-hand.

Euthanasia came from two Greek words which when combined, maybe translated to

easy death. Its the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick

or injured individuals [as persons or domestic animals] in a relatively painless way for

reasons of mercy (Webster, 2009)

Actually, I placed euthanasia last on my list. Euthanasia is a very hard and sensitive

issue. To be honest, I still dont know where I stand, I only went with this journal

because, if I may borrow the words of its proponents, Im just prolonging my agony by

choosing another topic since no matter what I do; I have to pass a paper about the said

subject before this semester ends.

One of the best examples of euthanasia that Ive seen on TV would have to be Greys

Anatomys Painless Suicidal episode. The patient [a woman] has given up on life asshe can no longer bear the pain brought about by cancer. This triggered Dr Hunts

memories of his life at war. Back then, his comrade has broken arms and legs, with one

arm completely detached from the body and both legs trapped under a vehicle. Hunt

had to place his hand to apply pressure to sustain his comrades life whilst waiting for

rescue to come, as he [his comrade] had a ruptured artery. He asked Hunt to let go, not

being able to deal with the pain. A few seconds later, the rescuers came just after Dr

Hunt withdrew his hands. It is almost eerie that Dr Hunt is facing the same situation

now, where he has the power to control life again. In the end, he prescribed the patient,

the one with cancer, a medicine which would help her [patient] die more easily.

It is the health care professionals job to preserve and improve the health of an

individual. Not to mention the treatment or care of individuals who are sick, injured,

harmed, disabled, or infirmed. (Camacho, 2011) Ironically, they may also be the ones

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who assist a person to die. Euthanasia would give health care professionals the power

to play God, as what a religious person might say. On the other hand, there is no

stated obligation to save a life, only an obligation not to kill.

The divine command ethics, argues that it is not for doctors "to play God" and that it'sfor God to decide when people die.But technically, all medical interventions are "playing

God. People undergo vaccinations which keep them alive longer than "God" planned

but no one considers this immoral.

If we base it on thepatients bill of rights, it is clearly stated that though a patient has the

right to refuse treatment to an extent permitted by law, it does not include the right to

die. Thus, a patient in a dying condition is not in the right mind to make an informed

choice. Personally, I think that euthanasia is purely personal. Its a request for you andyourself only. Of course it affects your family, only because you are involved and it is

your decision. But its not as if youre giving anyone the power to request that someone

elses life be terminated. And in euthanasia, no ones life is actually saved, only taken.

Conversely, natural law ethics deals with the protection and preservation of innocence.

Therefore, it is a moral rule that no one should ever kill an innocent person. It would

seem that euthanasia is always wrong. But because of the double effect principle, it

may well allow an action whose intention is merely to relieve pain, even if the action

leads to death.

The debate on whether euthanasia should be legalized has been raging for years and it

is unlikely that it will ever be resolved, at least, in the near future. Each case is different

and should be viewed in context, nevertheless, it still hard to decide. Sometimes, the

treatments are only there to relieve symptoms and improve the quality of a patients

remaining life, and if a patient is still suffering despite all the medication, why not let him

or her leave peacefully? In my book, this decision is not cowardness, but bravery. I think

when we are able to watch someone die horribly, like that of a movie (Saw and Final

Destination) or just a slow and painful death, it becomes easier to understand why some

people believe that euthanasia should be an option.