health care ethics
Over the past few weeks we have studied several topics in the field of health care ethics. In a 700-900 word essay, your task is to present ONE of the topics in detail–the topics / questions are listed below. You may use outside resources, but you should rely primarily on the texts and articles used in class. Use a philosopher (preferably the philosopher you wrote about in your first exam) to discuss the ethical aspects of the issue. For instance, if you chose Kant in your first essay, discuss his ethical theory and how he would approach abortion (or any of the other ethical issues below).
1.) On what basis can abortion be considered immoral? On what basis can it be considered moral? What is personhood, and when should a fertilized egg be considered to have the rights of a human being. Be sure to balance your approach to these questions. In the last paragraph or two, justify your own ethical point-of-view on the matter by using one of the ethical theories we’ve studied.
2.) Should drugs be legalized? Discuss William F. Buckley’s stance on the matter. For opposition, use this argument by James Q Wilson (http://www.slate.com/articles/briefing/q/2000/09/legalizing_drugs_makes_matters_worse.html). Be sure to be detailed in your presentation of both sides of the arguments. In the last paragraph or two, justify your own ethical point-of-view on the matter by using one of the ethical theories we’ve studied.
3.) What are the ethical issues surrounding organ transplantation? Explain the process of how candidates receive organs and how this matter is ethical? How do we choose candidates for transplant now? Are there other ways of distributing the organs? In the last paragraph or two, justify your own ethical point-of-view on the matter by using one of the ethical theories we’ve studied.
5.) What are the ethical issues involved in surrogacy? Is it "right" to use a females reproductive system in such a manner? Is this similar to prostitution? What is "alienated labor" and is surrogacy an example of it? In the last paragraph or two, justify your own ethical point-of-view on the matter by using one of the ethical theories we’ve studied.
