ETHC445N Week 3 Assignment: Course Project Milestone – Topic Selection and Discussion

Course

ETHC445N – Principles of Ethics

Required Resources
Read/review the following resources for this activity:

  • Textbook: Chapter 5, 6
  • Lesson
  • Minimum of 2 scholarly sources (in addition to the course textbook)

Instructions
This assignment is the first step in a three part project. You only need to focus on part one at this point. Each step will build on earlier steps. However, it is not a matter of providing a rough draft of all or even part of the entire project here in week three. That is, further steps might require completely new and original text.  At the same time, completing each step will aid you in completing a future step or future steps. And, you should use the same topic in all steps.

First, select a topic of moral controversy, debate, disagreement, and dispute, Examples of such topics are euthanasia, the death penalty, abortion, cloning, etc. You can pick any such topic. It need not be listed here.

Next, detail the positions of each side of the ethical debate. Note at least two moral reasons each side presents to show their view on the topic is correct.

Now, we want to evaluate these positions using the moral theories we studied this week:

  • What would an Ethical Egoist say about this topic? What side would the Ethical Egoist take? What would the Ethical Egoist say to justify their moral position? Is there a conflict between loyalty to self and to community relevant to your topic? If so, how so? Note what you feel is the best course of action.
  • What would a Social Contract Ethicist say about this topic? What side would the Social Contract Ethicist take? What would the Social Contract Ethicist say to justify their moral position? Does your topic involve a collision between personal obligations and national ones? If so, how so? Note what you feel is the best course of action.

Finally, reference and discuss any professional code of ethics relevant to your topic such as the AMA code for doctors, the ANA code for nurses, or any other pertinent professional code. State whether and how your chosen topic involves any conflicts between professional and familial duties.

Cite the textbook and incorporate outside sources, including citations.

Writing Requirements (APA format)

  • Length: 3-4pages (not including title page or references page)
  • 1-inch margins
  • Double spaced
  • 12-point Times New Roman font
  • Title page
  • References page (minimum of 2 scholarly sources in addition to the course textbook)

SOLUTION 

Course Project Milestone – Topic Selection and Discussion

From the 1900s, the discourse surrounding euthanasia legalization has been widely canvassed around the United States. The debate has resulted in sharply contrasting views among different policymakers, healthcare professionals, and the larger public. Recent times as from the 1980s have seen this issue gain momentum. A pathologist by the name of Jacob Kevorkian published a newspaper ad, referring to himself as a death counselor (Dugdale et al., 2019). He had developed a device meant to self-administer lethal injection. In the year 1999, Kevorkian was found guilty of second-degree murder and was convicted after having recorded himself administering lethal medication and sharing the video. In Washington v. Glucksberg (1997), and Vacco v. Quill (1997), the Supreme Court ruled that the right to die or PAS is not enshrined in the US constitution. As a result, it was decided to be the mandate of an individual state to establish whether or not, to lawfully authorize physician-assisted suicide (PAS) or abolish it in totality altogether. In the year 1997, the state of Oregon was the first to legally approve PAS. From that time, other states such as Colorado, Maine, California, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, and New Jersey, have as well moved to legally sanction the practice. However, the nation is still sharply divided on the matter.

Proponents of PAS, which includes both voluntary euthanasia and medically assisted suicide argue that it observes patient liberties to autonomy and is vital in relieving one’s agony and pain. Autonomy is a core ethical principle in healthcare practice, which exerts the most influence within the American medical practice….please click the purchase button below to access the entire solution at $10