Reference no: EM133618733

Problem

Examined the four pillars of medical ethics: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice. Using these four pillars as your rationale for your answers, please consider the following three cases and answer the questions after each one.

Case I

A woman enters the emergency room with stomach pain. She undergoes a CT scan and is diagnosed with an abdominal aortic aneurysm a weakening in the wall of the aorta which causes it to stretch and bulge. The physicians inform hyer that the only way to fix the problem is surgically, and that the changes of survival are about 50/50. They also inform her that time is of the essence, and that should the aneurysm burst, she would be dead in a few short minutes. The woman is an exotic dancer, and she worries that the surgery will leave a scar that will negatively affect her work; therefore, she refuses any surgical treatment. Even after much pressuring from the physicians, she adamantly refuses surgery. Feeling that the woman is not in her correct state of mind and knowing that time is of the essence, the surgeons decide to perform the surgery as an emergency procedure without consent. They anesthetize er and surgically repair the aneurysm. She survives, and is now suing the hospital for millions of dollars.

Task

1. Using the four pillars of medical ethics to defend your answer, do you feel that the physician's actions can be justified in any way? Please explain.

2. Is there anything else that they could have done?

3. Is it ever right to take away someone's ability to choose for themselves?

Case II

You are a PCP and a mother comes into your office with her child who is complaining of flu-like symptoms. Upon entering the room, you ask the boy to remove his shirt and you see a distinct patter of bruises on the boy's back. You ask the mother where the bruises came from, and she tells you that they are from a procedure she performed on her son known as 'cao gio' which is also known as 'coining' The procedure involves rubbing warm oils or gels on a person's skin with a coin or other flat metal object. The mother explains that the cao gio technique is used to raise out bad blood from the body, improve circulation, and promote healing. When you touch the boy's back with your stethoscope, he winces in pain from the bruises. You debate whether or not you should call Child Protective Services to report the mother for child abuse.

Task

1. Using the four pillars of medical ethics to defend your answer, do you feel that the mother has the right to treat her child using a cultural practice that is not US Western Medicine-based?

2. At what point does a physician have a responsibility to step in and stop a cultural practice? (Remember, many procedures such as a having one's tonsils removed are medically beneficial even though they may cause pain).

3. Do you feel that the physician should report the mother to child protective services? Why or why not?

Case III

Imagine that the US Supreme Court has decided to make a ruling on the 'Right to Die' for patients who want to end their own life due to a terminal illness that is not treatable.

Task

1. Which of the four pillars of medical ethics are important when examining this question?

2. From the perspective of the four pillars of medical ethics, do you feel that this action to allow patients the 'Right to Die' should be passed or not? Note: I am looking for your opinions on the ethical part of this question, not whether this should be a state or federal act. If you firmly believe this should be state by state, then imagine that the question is directed at Massachusetts rather than at a Supreme Court level.