Medical Ethics Issues - Essay Example

The issue of doing the right thing has been one that has had an impact on all professions that are present today and none more than the medical sector (Pence, 2010). Medical ethics refers to the issue of subjects such as morality and doing the right thing in the different situations that doctors may be faced with (Pence, 2010). In this case, however, the ethical aspect of this medical dilemma has been placed in the hands of the parents and the decision that they have to make is difficult, to say the least. Deciding which one between two children is given a chance at life is one that cannot be made easier in any way and thus all that is left is to examine the main ethical issues that the parents are faced with when making this choice (Tauber, 2005). There are several ethical aspects that they are faced with and some of these include:

Life and Death. The issue of life and death can be said to be the main ethical issue that the parents are faced with. It can be considered unethical to decide who gets to live and who dies but in a situation such as this where those making the decision are left with no other choice, this matter can be seen as invalid to a certain point (Tauber, 2005). The only other choice that the parents are left with is to let both the children die and this in itself is unethical in the fact that one should not allow death to befall a patient if there is a chance that it can be avoided (Pence, 2010). However, deciding to save one twin will automatically result in the decision to let the other die and this is where the dilemma occurs. The fact that they both have an equal chance of surviving makes it harder still as this leaves them without the criteria of chance which they could have used to defend their decision.

Murder. The decision to let one live and the other die can also be considered as denying life to the child whom they decide to let go of and this in itself can be considered to be the taking of a life, in other words murder (Tauber, 2005). Even though the parents have no option but to choose one this does not remove the fact that letting the other child die can be considered to be murder. For one child to live, another must die and this cannot be ignored (Pence, 2010). The point of equal chance of survival means that they will be denying one child their God-given chance to live and this is another issue that makes the decision they have to make murder.

The decision to do nothing, where both children risk death can also be considered murder to a certain degree as they will be denying them the opportunity to live a full and healthy life (Pence, 2010). This means that no matter what the parents decide they are what can be termed as in between a rock and a hard place.

Playing God. The decision of who lives and who dies can be considered as playing God (Pence, 2010). Only God has the power to decide who should be denied life and thus making this decision can be said to be playing God.