Autonomy Saves All Essay

794 Words4 Pages

Utilitarianism, Kantian/deontological, and virtue ethics are some of the moral theories that have been touched upon in class. These theories apply to our everyday life and in many ways make their way into the medical field and our everyday life. There are positive and negatives for each of these theories and all have their own take on biomedical ethical issues. In the article “Autonomy Trumps All? A Kantian Critique of Physician-Assisted Death” by Hoa Trung Dinh, the article explores the views and thoughts of physician-assisted deaths and if they are morally ethical. Autonomy plays a major role in biomedical ethics and is described as “making own decisions for yourself, not others, without inappropriate influence” therefore the autonomy of physician-assisted deaths would come in to play when the patient is deciding …show more content…

This article talks about physician-assisted deaths from a Kantian theory standpoint, in the article it states that “the decision to ends one’s life is itself not autonomous” (Dinh, 478). Autonomy follows the idea of making own decisions for you, not others without inappropriate influence; Kant believes that this procedure violates autonomy and therefore should not be done. Although the article is slated from Kant’s viewpoint, it is also important to remember the other viewpoint. This topic is morally important in our society because such procedures occur today in our society. In many states and countries, physician-assisted deaths are becoming illegal, but are there benefits to this procedure that outweigh the consequences? Physician-assisted deaths could possibly benefit and help patients in need that are terminally ill. These assisted deaths are morally important because if they are able to help individuals, people should be able to choose what they wish to do depending on the