Ethical Dilemma: Voluntary Euthanasia

Ethical Dilemma
Institution
Date
Voluntary Euthanasia refers to the practice of painlessly ending life of terminally ill patients (Stoffel, 2009). Proponents of assisted or voluntary euthanasia argue that it becomes agonizing and expensive to continue having patients on life support while no meaningful gains are being made towards recovery. Dax Cowart and Terry Schiavo show two cases of ethical dilemma presented differently. After suffering severe burns in his body, Dax Cowart continually pleaded with his physician to let him die. At some point in the hospital, he refused to consent to disinfectant treatment and made his desire to die known. Cowart's physician refused to end Cowart's life (Burt, 1998). The medical practitioner's acted not only as a doctor but also a human being who upheld the sanctity of life. Had he given in to Cowarts demands, a lot would have changed.
Due to the physician's decision not to end Cowart's life, moral values were upheld. Cowarts, later on, became healthy, graduated from law school, married and live happily with family (Burt, 1998). Ethically, the physician played a significant role in making a decision as a doctor and as a human being. He helped Cowart became who he is today. Whereas the story of Cowarts is positive and entrenches the role of upholding ethical, social and moral values and moral norms, the story of Terry Schiavo is different. The family felt she had the right to live while the doctor and the federal government decided to take her life thereby shattering the life of family members and friends. Assisted Euthanasia affects the society as a whole differently. Both cases allude to the fact that decision to live should be left with close family members and not medical practitioners. Cowart's mother wanted life for her son, and the physician upheld it, on the other hand, Terry Schiavo's mother also wanted life for the daughter, but the doctor refused, resulting in a broken family.
Euthanasia debate has been an emotive issue and is being viewed very differently by members of the public. Some people approve and support the application of euthanasia while others do not support it at all. One of the people who believe that euthanasia should not be administered is Michael. Michael is a devoted Christian, who believes in the sanctity of life. When interviewed, Michael said no human being reserves the morality to take another person's life irrespective of the reason. Michel claims that no sit...