Euthanasia is Ending One’s Life to Reduce Pain and Suffering
Read the following case study and respond to the question below.
26-year-old jet pilot and sometime rodeo performer Donald Cowart was standing in a field with his father when there was a violent explosion caused by leaking gas. The explosion killed his father and sent Donald, whose body was engulfed in flames, running for half a mile. When a farmer found him, Cowart, who was in excruciating pain from burns covering more than 65 percent of his body, asked for a gun so he could kill himself. The farmer refused his request and called an ambulance. Cowart asked the paramedics not to drive him to the hospital but to leave him in the field to die. They instead administered life-saving measures and took him to the hospital.
Cowart lost both his eyes and all his fingers and underwent several operations for skin grafts and amputations. After he was released from the hospital, Cowart attempted suicide several times. Eventually, he completed a law degree. Cowart frequently speaks at medical conferences on issues relating to euthanasia. He still insists that the hospital staff who treated him for his burns violated his right to self-determination in keeping him alive (1).
1.) Question: Should Cowart have been allowed to die when he requested it?
2.) Instructions
Use the Case Study Assignment Template to do the following:
*Describe the relevant facts of the case.
*Clarify concepts relevant to the case.
*Apply a moral standard to the case.
*Articulate a conclusion to the stated question.
Facts
* The farmer did a noble thing by calling an ambulance instead of accepting Cowart’s request.
* The paramedics acted professionally by administering life-saving measures and taking Cowart to the hospital.
* Although Cowart had the right to self-determination, the paramedics did the right thing by rejecting his decision because their primary objective was to save a life.
* The principles of beneficence and nonmaleficence guided the paramedics.
Relevant Concepts
Euthanasia is ending one’s life to reduce pain and suffering. Although it is illegal in many states, those that have approved mercy killing have set conditions that must be met. They include: the patient must be terminally ill or experience unbearable pain; the patient must give consent; and the physician must exhaust all other pain relief measures (Boss, 2020). Cowart, who was experiencing excruciating pain, sought to die in dignity. However, the paramedics saw the need to resuscitate him instead of condoning assisted murder.
Standard
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