Overview: Healthcare professionals provide support throughout the cycle of life, from birth to death. They have an obligation to provide humane andcompassionate care to patients while adhering to their specific field’s code of ethics. Sometimes, healthcare professionals are privy to discussions between family members regarding end-of-life issues. In some instances, a healthcare facility may be in charge of providing information about advance directives to patients. Healthcare professionals should calibrate their own moral beliefs to align with their ethical and legal obligations. By studying issues contained within real-life cases, healthcare professionals can come to terms with their beliefs and obligations relative to end-of-life issues.
Prompt: In this project, you will analyze the Terri Schiavo case through the lens of the bioethical issue(s) related to the case. You will address what the bioethical issue is and what role end-of-life issues, such as self-determination and advanced directives, played in the case. Using your analysis, you will determine how this bioethical issue impacted the decisions made by the healthcare professionals involved in the case.
Specifically, your essay must address the following critical elements:
- Introduction: Describe the provided case, including information on the stakeholders involved, the bioethical issue, and the time period of the incident that occurred.
- Bioethical Analysis: Analyze the bioethical issue for the role end-of-life issues played in the case. Be sure to use appropriate terminology and support with secondary research.
- Conclusion: Describe how the bioethical issue influenced the decisions of healthcare professionals involved in the case. Be sure to use specific examples.Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: Your bioethical short paper should be 1–2 pages in Microsoft Word with 12-point Times New Roman font and one-inch margins. All
citations and references should be formatted according to the most recent APA guidelines.
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction:
The Terri Schiavo case is a famous case that raised several bioethical issues concerning end-of-life care. In this project, healthcare professionals will analyze the case through a bioethical lens and determine how end-of-life issues impacted the decisions made by healthcare professionals involved in the case.
1. Describe the provided case, including information on the stakeholders involved, the bioethical issue, and the time period of the incident that occurred.
The Terri Schiavo case concerned a young woman who suffered a cardiac arrest and was left in a persistent vegetative state. Her husband wanted to remove her life support, but her parents, who opposed the decision, sued to keep her alive. The case raised several bioethical issues, including the right to self-determination, the role of advanced directives, and the ethical dilemma of determining when to end life support. The incident occurred in 1990, and the legal battles continued for nearly 15 years.
2. Analyze the bioethical issue for the role end-of-life issues played in the case. Be sure to use appropriate terminology and support with secondary research.
End-of-life issues played a significant role in the Terri Schiavo case. The right to self-determination, the ability for individuals to make their own healthcare decisions, came into conflict with the role of advanced directives, legal documents that specify an individual’s wishes for end-of-life care. In the absence of clear directives, healthcare professionals and the legal system often struggled to determine what actions should be taken. The case also raised ethical questions about the role of healthcare professionals in determining when life support should be removed and who should make those decisions.
3. Describe how the bioethical issue influenced the decisions of healthcare professionals involved in the case. Be sure to use specific examples.
The bioethical issue of end-of-life care heavily influenced the decisions made by healthcare professionals involved in the Terri Schiavo case. Despite the legal and ethical conflicts, healthcare professionals had an ethical obligation to provide the best possible care for their patient. In some cases, healthcare professionals were forced to make difficult decisions about initiating or continuing life support even in the absence of clear directives. The legal battles and the public attention placed a great deal of pressure on healthcare professionals, forcing them to carefully weigh their ethical and legal obligations with their own moral beliefs.
