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Ethical Considerations In End Of Life Care

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Dominican University Ethical Considerations in End-of-Life Care: The Role of Advanced Directives. Tanya De La Riva THEO 368 02 Dr. Rachel Hart Winter April 17, 2024 End-of-life care plunges deep into ethical questions of the autonomy and consent issues around informed decision-making by the patient regarding his or her own medical treatment. Advanced directives (ADs) are important tools that help in respecting the autonomy of the patient and ensure that end-of-life care is implemented in the spirit of the patient's will. This paper discusses advanced directives in healthcare, highlighting the ethical balance that ADs bring forth between patient and practitioner autonomy. Advanced directives are instruments that enable a person …show more content…

Originating from ADs was late in the 20th century when legal recognition came in. One of the most crucial policies to encourage making is the Policy Self-Determination Act of 1990. However, it continues to be adopted in different populations and affected by cultural, religious, and personal factors. Ethically, advanced directives demand from the health provider to strike a balance between respecting the patient's autonomy, the principle of beneficence, and the duty to act in the best interest of the patient. Beauchamp and Childress (2001) proposed an ethical framework based on the principles: "autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice. Respecting autonomy in the context of ADs, therefore, will stand to demand adherence to the wishes expressed by the patient even when these are in contradiction to what the health practitioners feel is in the best medical interests of the patient." Spirituality often plays a large part in the influence of end-of-life care decisions. Most faiths have varying thoughts on the acceptability and use of ADs. For instance, it is the Catholic Church that supports the application of ADs so long as they conform to the teaching of

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However, cultural, religious, and personal factors continue to impact their adoption across different populations. Ethics: Ethical Frameworks for Decision-Making From an ethical standpoint, advanced directives challenge healthcare providers to balance respect for patient autonomy with beneficence—the duty to act in the patient's best interest. The ethical framework provided by Beauchamp and Childress (2001) emphasizes the principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice. In the context of ADs, respecting autonomy means adhering to the patient’s expressed wishes in an AD, even when they conflict with what healthcare providers might feel is in the patient’s best medical interests. Spirituality: Religious and Faith Considerations Spirituality often plays a significant role in decisions about end-of-life care.

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