Is it moral to make decision to withdraw medical treatment for an incompetent patient?
Fong Tsz Yang
15002689
NUR 3002 Ethical and Legal Aspects of Health Care
Tung Wah College
Is it moral to make decision to withdraw medical treatment for an incompetent patient?
Introduction
This paper is going to evaluate the morality of making a decision to withdraw medical treatment for an incompetent patient, the case of Robert Wendland, based on ethical theories, principles in medical ethics, capacity and competency, advance directives and consent.
Robert Wendland has suffered from a car accident in 1993, which caused him to be physically and mentally disabled that the right side of his body was paralyzed and could not talk after the accident. He was not able to perform any …show more content…
Application to other ethical issues
In this section, some variables will be changed and theories will applied to consider the ethicality of making decision for Robert.
Mentally capable and could talk
If Robert was only suffering from physical impairment instead of mentally disabled and could not talk, autonomy of Robert should be respected, while either express consent or implied consent could be made to make fully informed medical decisions. He also could have made an advance directive for the direction of future medical treatment. If he refused to be kept alive, we should accept and respect his decisions.
Addition of complication(s)/ coma/ persistent vegetative state
If Robert was suffering from complication(s), coma or in persistent vegetative state that his death was imminent and inevitable, withdrawal of ANH, based on utilitarianism and virtue ethics, was ethical and should be supported.
Different in age (Old/ young) or sex
Although being older seems to had less time left than being young before death, based
Fong Tsz Yang
15002689
NUR 3002 Ethical and Legal Aspects of Health Care
Tung Wah College
Is it moral to make decision to withdraw medical treatment for an incompetent patient?
Introduction
This paper is going to evaluate the morality of making a decision to withdraw medical treatment for an incompetent patient, the case of Robert Wendland, based on ethical theories, principles in medical ethics, capacity and competency, advance directives and consent.
Robert Wendland has suffered from a car accident in 1993, which caused him to be physically and mentally disabled that the right side of his body was paralyzed and could not talk after the accident. He was not able to perform any …show more content…
Application to other ethical issues
In this section, some variables will be changed and theories will applied to consider the ethicality of making decision for Robert.
Mentally capable and could talk
If Robert was only suffering from physical impairment instead of mentally disabled and could not talk, autonomy of Robert should be respected, while either express consent or implied consent could be made to make fully informed medical decisions. He also could have made an advance directive for the direction of future medical treatment. If he refused to be kept alive, we should accept and respect his decisions.
Addition of complication(s)/ coma/ persistent vegetative state
If Robert was suffering from complication(s), coma or in persistent vegetative state that his death was imminent and inevitable, withdrawal of ANH, based on utilitarianism and virtue ethics, was ethical and should be supported.
Different in age (Old/ young) or sex
Although being older seems to had less time left than being young before death, based