Case Study #4: What is more important: Life or Ethics? The following case study illustrates the conflicts that can arise between patients and doctors when patients choose to refuse medical treatment that may be necessary to save their lives. A woman is admitted to the emergency room with stomach pain that turns out to be an abdominal aortic aneurysm, “ a weakening in the wall of the aorta which causes it to stretch and bulge” (Cirone). The doctors inform her that she needs surgery as soon as possible and that the chances of survival are 50/50. The woman, however, is an erotic dancer who fears that the surgery will leave a scar that will have a negative effect on her work, and thus refuses surgery. The surgeons perceive that she may not be in a correct state of mind and since time is vital, they decide to perform the surgery without her consent. As a result, the woman survives, but sues the hospital for millions of dollars.
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It is important to consider the universal moral beliefs that practitioners of the medical world apply to the actions that they take on an everyday basis. Many of the physicians today have taken an oath prior to the commencement of their medical careers. Although there are different kinds of oaths, many of them share the same morals and beliefs. For example, the Hippocratic oath makes the promise to do “no harm” (Shmerling). By considering their beliefs, one can apply Kant’s ethics of duty to justify the surgeon’s decision to perform the surgery. In this situation, the surgeons would cause irreversible harm to the patient if they didn’t do the surgery. Thus, they made this decision in accordance with their belief that they should not cause harm during any circumstance; they should always, without exception, do anything they can to help save someone’s
It is important to consider the universal moral beliefs that practitioners of the medical world apply to the actions that they take on an everyday basis. Many of the physicians today have taken an oath prior to the commencement of their medical careers. Although there are different kinds of oaths, many of them share the same morals and beliefs. For example, the Hippocratic oath makes the promise to do “no harm” (Shmerling). By considering their beliefs, one can apply Kant’s ethics of duty to justify the surgeon’s decision to perform the surgery. In this situation, the surgeons would cause irreversible harm to the patient if they didn’t do the surgery. Thus, they made this decision in accordance with their belief that they should not cause harm during any circumstance; they should always, without exception, do anything they can to help save someone’s