Bioethical Principles in Medical Science Essay Example for Free

Bioethical Principles in Medical Science Essay The principlist approach to biomedical ethics is understood on the basis of two central theses. The first thesis is that moral principles are non-absolute and that they do not occur in a determinate order of precedence. This means that every single principle is prima facie. These prima facie principles are; beneficence, respect for autonomy, non-maleficence and justice. The second central thesis, usually called the global applicability thesis, posits that the four prima facie principles derived from common morality make principlism universally applicable. Analysis of ethical questions based on the biomedical principles of ethics is central to moral reasoning while at the same time respects exigencies of circumstance and liberates pluralism (Beauchamp Childress 14; Herissone-Kelly 65). Since this application of ethical principles is sensitive to moral beliefs encountered in everyday lives, it forms the basis of ethics in biomedical practice. It acts as a guide to action even though the four principles do not operate in a determinate order of precedence. In attempting to discern the ethics of physician assisted suicide one central question comes into mind. Is assisted suicide morally justified? In a nutshell, assisted suicide or more specifically, physician assisted suicide, refers to a case where the patient has ended his life either with a lethal dose or any other medically provided instrument after the patient requested for the lethal dosage from the physician who provided the dosage for the specific reason of ending the life. The difference between euthanasia and assisted suicide is that in the case of euthanasia, it is the physician who administers the lethal dose or withdraws the life support system because the patient in question is unable to administer the same to him/herself. Thus, the difference lies in the difference in who makes the action that precedes death. In assisted suicide, it is the patient who acts last. The choice of taking the lethal dosage or pushing the button that will terminate life solely rests with the patient and they have the capacity to alter their decision before their actions become irreversible. Even though the physician plays a causal role in both; the patient kills him/herself in assisted suicide while in the latter, it is the physician who kills the patient. This difference creates an intrinsic moral difference between the two. This brings into question the principle of respect for autonomy. The moral principle of respect for autonomy refers to a patient’s freedom of liberty or choice interests. However, it should not be confused with an all-for-nothing phenomenon. Gradations of autonomy and its interpretation in different circumstances are variable. A patient’s autonomy can be interfered with when there is excessive control (too much interference with the patient’s decisions) or when there is too little interference (neglect of the patient). Respect for an individuals autonomy is also threatened in cases where an individual’s right contravenes another individual’s freedom of choice and their actions (Brent 40). With respect to assisted suicide, the patient in question having satisfied the qualifications of making an informed consent can request the causal assistance of the physician to carry out actions that directly lead to their death. In such a case, professional codes of ethics bind physicians to respect the patient’s rights to self determination by unobstructing the conditions for the operation of an autonomous action such as: intentionality, understanding, and the complete absence of any controlling influence. In a situation where all these conditions are met and the physician dutifully performs their causal roles, physician assisted suicide is ethically correct. This is so because so long as the patient’s rights are supported it automatically follows that ethical permissibility of assisted suicide is also granted (Weir 89; http://www. deathreference. com/). In cases whether the patient is suffering from a treatable clinical depression or dementia which impair the decision making capacity of the patient, the right to self determination do not apply (http://www. inclusiondaily. com/). The moral principle of Non maleficence hold that a person should not do harm. It specifically holds that one should have the capacity to discern actions that are morally harmful. However, there is controversy as determining the intention behind an action. At the same time, determining whether an intentional or unintentional action refrains from action harms or puts the subject at a risk of harm. The moral principle of beneficence entails the following obligations: to prevent harm, to eliminate harm, and to do good. These three conditions characterize the measures taken by medical practitioners to balance the components of risks, harms and benefits. Beneficence therefore encompasses professional, personal and societal obligations (Brent 41). The principle of beneficence largely builds on the foundational principle of non maleficence. In this case assisted suicide is ethically permissible on the basis of an individuals well being. It can be argued that in such a case, to promoting and protecting the patients well being may be contradictory to the patient’s right to self determination. However, this is not so. Life is often is perceived as being good and its value is a product of our pursuit of goods within life itself. In an assisted suicide scenario, a person who is fully competent to reach a decision decides that life sustaining treatments no longer has any benefit but has become a burden. Most of these patients are often critically ill, dying or in a very debilitated and severely compromised state. If such patients request the means to end their lives, it is in line with non maleficence or beneficence because such an act is value to the patient’s life. Unless if the patient is unable to reach a competent decision and the dictatorial authority transferred to a surrogate, the right of self determination stands and is not in contradiction to the principles of non maleficence and maleficence(Weir 90). Moreover, such a decision is only ethical if it does not infringe on the moral and professional values of the physician. Additionally, assisted suicide is an act of compassion that eliminates further suffering and pain. Refusal to grant the patient their claim or entitlement is akin to putting them to unbearable suffering. Finally, the moral principle of justice simply refers to fairness. It is the act of receiving ones due; entitlement or claim. Distributive justice concerns itself with how fairly benefits can be allocated and distributed. Basically, four considerations guide moral justice. For instance, an equal share, according to a persons need, according to a person’s effort, and lastly, according to societal contribution (Brent 42). Physician assisted suicide is supported by the moral principle of justice in the context of â€Å"treat like cases alike† (http://depts. washington. edu/). When competent but terminally ill patients request lethal dose medications or refuse life sustaining treatments with the sole purpose of hastening death, it is only just that they should be granted their claim. However, these arguments are only suitable when the ethics of assisted suicide is analyzed on a basis of the biomedical ethical principles. Works Cited BBC News. Assisted suicide danger claim. April 20, 2009. http://news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/8008736. stm Beauchamp, Tom L, Childress, James F. Principles of biomedical ethics. Oxford University Press, 2001; 1-23 Brent, Nancy J. Nurses and the law: a guide to principles and applications. 2nd Edition. Elsevier Health Sciences, 2000; 40-47 Reynolds, Dave. Assisted Suicides For Mental Illness, Too, Swiss Court Rules. Euthanasia, Assisted Suicide, Eugenics, Bioethics. Inclusion Daily Express. February 5, 2007. http://www. inclusiondaily. com/archives/07/02/05/020507sweuth. htm Encyclopedia of Death and Dying. Bioethics. http://www. deathreference. com/A-Bi/Bioethics. html Harrison-Kelly, Peter. The Principlist approach to bioethics, and its stormy journey overseas. in, â€Å"Scratching the surface of bioethics†, By Matti Hayry, Tuija Takala. Rodopi Press, 2003; 65-72 Physician-Assisted Suicide. Ethics in Medicine. University of Washington School of Medicine. http://depts. washington. edu/bioethx/topics/pas. html Weir, Robert F. Physician-assisted suicide. Indiana University Press, 1997; 86-97

A culture of my own :: essays research papers

A Culture of My Own   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The smell of the ocean, palm trees, and the sound of the salsa beats in the distance, characteristics of a beautiful culture. But is that really what My culture is. As a Cuban in America, culture is much different than that of a island native. My culture, or should I say, the culture that my family has molded into our own, is a spectacular one. It may not be the same as it was one-hundred years ago, or even twenty years ago for that matter. But one things makes that okay, culture is not written, nor are you born with in. We humans are taught culture. And what I’ve learned and discovered on my own is that being Cuban means many things to me; it means music and loudness, A lot of family memories, and most definitely pride.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To begin with, the Cuban culture is one of much loudness and joyous music. Growing up, there was never a day that I did not wake up to the sound of loud salsa music blaring. Or to the loud voices of my mother or grandmother talking. To anyone else this â€Å"talking† would surely be mistaken for an argument or fight. Cuba is where salsa music and the conga drum originated so we tend to be very prideful of this. One of the greatest salsa singer/writer was the late Celia Cruz. She was somewhat of a hero to Cuban people; seeing as though she had been a Cuban refugee, and became a great success in the U.S. Her recent passing was a devastation, not only to the Cuban society but to all Latinos and many Americans as well.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Which brings me to family. My Mother and Aunts had grown up listening to and admiring Celia Cruz so you can only imagine their reaction to her death. Our entire family was in mourning. Sound kind of silly, but it was as if one of our on had passed. Like many Latin families, mine is huge! And what does a huge family mean; a lot of parties, weddings, and holidays. Holidays with a Cuban family is a one of a kind experience. There is drinking, music, fun, and of course fights. It is certainly somewhat of a comforting chaos. This past Christmas, I spent alone with my Mother and Step- Father, and it was just not the same.

Descartes on God Essay

Rene Descartes is a famous French philosopher and is considered as the â€Å"Father of Rationalism. † The aim of his philosophy was to arrive in a solid foundation for knowledge. In order to arrive in this, he used a method called the Methodic Doubt wherein he doubted the senses, mathematics, and even the existence of god. It was only until he arrived with a solid entity called â€Å"the cogito† was Descartes able to discover the center of his existence. Upon finding this center, he was able to use this entity as a means into explaining the existence of the things he previously doubted. In regards to proving the existence of god, we need to tackle first why Descartes needed to doubt the existence of god. This was a very important step in his philosophy because the theories in his philosophy would have a sounder foundation if he was going to use them to explain the existence of God. As what was stated above, Descartes used the Methodic Doubt in order to arrive with the cogito and say his phrase â€Å"cogito ergo sum† or I think therefore I am. This cogito exists in a metaphysical plane because Descartes believed that everything that existed in the physical world were not real. The reasons why he had to doubt the physical world include the fact that the senses deceive us. Examples of these are a pencil which gives the illusion of bending after placing it in a glass of water. Others include dreams which a person would consider to be so real until they wake up in bed. And finally, everything in this world is subject to change which he presented after burning a piece of wax and then asking if the residue of the wax is still considered as wax. After doubting the senses, he soon went to doubt the validity of the physical world. In order to do this, he asserted that there is a malevolent demon that would deceive us into believing that what we perceive is real. Now that he was able to discard god as the foundation of true knowledge, we now shifts his focus to the cogito. However, being left with the cogito could lead to solipsism, a view wherein a person believes that only the individual exists, since everything existed except the cogito. So Descartes needed to prove the existence of God in order to validate the existence of the physical world and free his philosophy from the perils of solipsism. Descartes gave some arguments that led to his proofs of the existence of god. His first proof dealt with the nature of ideas. He classified different kinds of ideas such as those that are innate in a person and those that were received through experience. Being rationalists, he considered ideas cause by the experience doubtful since they do arise from the senses, which he discarded as the means for a clear and distinct idea. So, he shifted his focus to innate ideas, or ideas that have been with a person since birth, and placed the idea of god under this classification. Now, Descartes asked from where these innate ideas came. It cannot be from nothingness since something cannot spring out of nothing. In addition, a perfect idea like that of god cannot come from a less perfect being and so he concluded that there was a first cause that placed the idea of a supreme being in my mind. This argument of Descartes can be compared with that of Saint Augustine’s first cause. However, the difference here is that the arguments of Saint Augustine dealt with motion and change within the physical world. Descartes arguments on the other had, tackle solely with ides and from where they came from. In addition to the argument of a first mover, Descartes was able to prove the existence of god through his own mortality. He asked himself how a person could think of an infinite being, such as god, if there is nothing to compare this form of existence with anything. It is from his own finite existence that he is able to create a distinction between the two modes of existence and prove the existence of an infinite and perfect being that is outside him. His next argument was derived from Saint Anselm’s ontological argument. Here, Descartes tries to justify his argument through describing a triangle. Whenever we would think of a triangle, the first thing that would enter our minds are its attributes, i. e. that it has three sides, all its angles have a total of 180 degrees, etc. Just like whenever we would think of the idea of god, we would usually first think of his attributes which are being omniscient, all-knowing, etc. The difference here is hat although we are able to think of a triangle, thinking about one does not necessarily entail it’s existence. On the other hand, to think of god as a perfect and infinite being must entail that he does exists for to say that a perfect being does not exists would mean that we are depriving god of one attribute and thus making him less perfect. So given this argument, Descartes asserts that existence is needed for perfection for there would be a major contradiction within the assertion of a perfect being that is lacking of any attribute. Finally, Descartes finally says that this god cannot be a deceiving god which he assumed in the beginning. This god cannot be a deceiver for this attribute cannot be found in a perfect being such as god because the act of deceiving someone arises from a certain defect. Upon proving the existence of god, Descartes was able to expand this philosophy by proving the existence of a separate world. He was able to do this by stating that the physical world exists since man was given a certain inclination in order to perceive the world. This inclination was given to us by god and we must believe that the world is true for god would not deceive us with this special inclination that he has given. After reading the proofs of Descartes, I would have to say that his arguments are very solid and logical that it would be hard to think otherwise. However, my only problem with Descartes philosophy is that he used the cogito as a scapegoat to all the problems that he encountered. What Descartes would do is that from the cogito he would begin to explain certain things such as god and the physical world. He would then explore these ideas but when he begins to run of way to explain his arguments he would go back to the cogito. AN example here would be when he tried to explain the existence of the physical world. He simply had to rely on the existence of god and that the inclination he gave man to believe that this world is true. This explanation, to me, seems more as a matter of faith in god as a non-deceiving being rather than a rational explanation.

The History and Love Story of the Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal is a breathtaking white-marble mausoleum commissioned by Mughul emperor Shah Jahan for his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Located on the southern bank of the Yamuna River near Agra, India, the Taj Mahal took 22 years to build and finally reached completion in 1653. This exquisite monument, considered one of the New Wonders of the World, astounds visitors for its symmetry, structural beauty, intricate calligraphy, inlaid gemstones, and magnificent garden. More than just a memorial in the name of a spouse, the Taj Mahal was a declaration of lasting love from Shan Jahan to his departed soulmate. The Love Story It was in 1607 that Shah Jahan, grandson of Akbar the Great, first met his beloved. At the time, he was not yet the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire. Sixteen-year-old Prince Khurram, as he was then called, flitted around the royal bazaar, flirting with the girls from high-ranking families that staffed the booths.   At one of these booths, Prince Khurram met Arjumand Banu Begum, the 15-year-old young woman whose father was soon to be the prime minister and whose aunt was married to Prince Khurram’s father. Although it was love at first sight, the two were not allowed to marry right away. Prince Khurram first had to marry Kandahari Begum. He later took a third wife as well. On March 27, 1612, Prince Khurram and his beloved, to whom he gave the name Mumtaz Mahal (â€Å"chosen one of the palace†), were married. Mumtaz Mahal was beautiful as well as smart and tender-hearted. The public was enamored with her, in no small part because she cared for the people. She diligently made lists of widows and orphans to ensure that they were given food and money. The couple had 14 children together but only seven lived past infancy. It was the birth of the 14th child that would kill Mumtaz Mahal. The Death of Mumtaz Mahal In 1631, three years into Shah Jahan’s reign, a rebellion led by Khan Jahan Lodi was underway. Shah Jahan took his military out to the Deccan, about 400 miles from Agra, in order to crush the usurper. As usual, Mumtaz Mahal accompanied Shah Jahan’s side despite being heavily pregnant. On June 16, 1631, she gave birth to a healthy baby girl in an elaborately decorated tent in the middle of the encampment. At first, all seemed to be well, but Mumtaz Mahal was soon dying. The moment Shah Jahan received word of his wife’s condition, he rushed to her side. Early in the morning on June 17, just one day after the birth of their daughter, Mumtaz Mahal died in her husbands arms. She was buried right away according to Islamic tradition near the encampment at Burbanpur. Her body would not stay there long. Reports say that in Shah Jahan’s anguish, he went to his own tent and cried for eight days without ceasing. When he emerged, he was said to have aged considerably, sporting white hair and glasses. Bringing Mumtaz Mahal Home In December 1631, with the feud against Khan Jahan Lodi won, Shah Jahan asked that Mumtaz Mahals body be dug up and brought 435 miles or 700 kilometers to Agra. Her return was a grand procession with thousands of soldiers accompanying her body and mourners lining the route. When the remains of Mumtaz Mahal reached Agra on January 8, 1632, they were temporarily buried on land donated by nobleman Raja Jai Singh. This was near where the Taj Mahal would be built. Plans for the Taj Mahal Shah Jahan, filled with grief, poured his emotion into designing an elaborate and expensive mausoleum that would bring all those that had come before it to shame. It was also unique in that it was the first large mausoleum dedicated to a woman. Although no primary architect for the Taj Mahal is known, it is believed that Shah Jahan, passionate about architecture himself, worked on the plans directly with the input and aid of a number of the best architects of his time. The intention was for the Taj Mahal, â€Å"the crown of the region†, to represent Heaven, Jannah, on Earth. Shah Jahan spared no expense in making this happen. Building the Taj Mahal The Mughal Empire was one of the richest empires in the world at the time of Shah Jahans reign, and this meant that he had the resources to make this monument incomparably grand. But though he wanted it to be breathtaking, he also wanted it erected quickly. To speed up the production, an estimated 20,000 workers were brought in and housed nearby in a town built especially for them called Mumtazabad. Both skilled and unskilled craftsmen were contracted. Builders first worked on the foundation and then on the giant, 624-foot-long plinth or base. This would become the base of the Taj Mahal building and the pair of matching red sandstone buildings that would flank it, the mosque and guest house. The Taj Mahal, sitting on a second plinth, was to be an octagonal structure constructed of marble-covered brick. As is the case for most large projects, the builders created a scaffolding in order to build higher. Their choice of bricks for this scaffolding was unusual and remains perplexing to historians. Marble White marble is one of the most striking and prominent features of the Taj Mahal. The marble used was quarried in Makrana, 200 miles away. Reportedly, it took 1,000 elephants and an untold number of oxen to drag the extremely heavy marble to the building site. For the massive marble pieces to reach to higher spaces of the Taj Mahal, a giant, 10-mile-long earthen ramp was built. The Taj Mahal is topped with a huge double-shelled dome that stretches 240 feet and is also covered in white marble. Four thin, white marble minarets stand tall at the corners of the second plinth and surround the mausoleum. Calligraphy and Inlaid Flowers Most pictures of the Taj Mahal show only a large white building. Though still lovely, this doesnt do the real structure justice. These photos leave out intricacies and it is these details that make the Taj Mahal astoundingly feminine and opulent. On the mosque, guest house, and large main gate at the southern end of the complex appear passages from the Quran or Koran, the holy book of Islam, written in calligraphy. Shah Jahan hired master calligrapher Amanat Khan to work on these inlaid verses. Masterfully done, the finished verses from the Quran are inlaid with black marble. They are a stately yet soft feature of the building. Although made of stone, the curves mimic real handwriting. The 22 passages from the Quran are said to have been chosen by Amanat Khan himself. Interestingly, Amanat Khan was the only person who Shah Jahan allowed to sign his work on the Taj Mahal. Almost more impressive than the calligraphy are the delicate inlaid flowers found throughout the Taj Mahal complex. In a process known as parchin kari, highly-skilled stone cutters carved intricate floral designs into the white marble and then inlaid these with precious and semi-precious stones to form interwoven vines and flowers. There are 43 different kinds of precious and semi-precious stones used for these flowers and they came from around the world. These include lapis lazuli from Sri Lanka, jade from China, malachite from Russia, and turquoise from Tibet. The Garden Islam holds the image of Paradise as a garden. Thus, the garden at the Taj Mahal was an integral part of making it Heaven on Earth. The Taj Mahal’s garden, which is situated to the south of the mausoleum, has four quadrants. These are divided by four â€Å"rivers† of water (another important Islamic image of Paradise) that gather in a central pool. The gardens and rivers were filled by the Yamuna River via a complex underground water system. Unfortunately, no records remain to tell the exact plants in these gardens. Shah Jahans Death Shah Jahan remained in deep mourning for two years and never fully healed after the death of his favorite wife. This gave Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan’s fourth son Aurangzeb the opportunity to successfully kill his three elder brothers and imprison his father. After 30 years as emperor, Shah Jahan was usurped and placed in the luxurious Red Fort in Agra in 1658. Forbidden to leave but with most of his usual luxuries, Shah Jahan spent his final eight years gazing out a window at the Taj Mahal. When Shah Jahan died on January 22, 1666, Aurangzeb had his father buried with Mumtaz Mahal in the crypt beneath the Taj Mahal. On the main floor of the Taj Mahal above the crypt now sits two cenotaphs (empty public tombs). The one in the center of the room belongs to Mumtaz Mahal and the one just to the west is for Shah Jahan. Surrounding the cenotaphs is a delicately-carved, lacy marble screen. Originally it had been a gold screen but Shah Jahan had that replaced so that thieves would not feel tempted to steal it. Destruction of the Taj Mahal Shah Jahan was wealthy enough to support the Taj Mahal and its mighty maintenance costs, but over the centuries, the Mughal Empire lost its riches and the Taj Mahal fell into ruins. By the 1800s, the British ousted the Mughals and took over India. The Taj Mahal was dissected for its beauty—the Britch cut gemstones from its walls, stole silver candlesticks and doors, and even tried to sell the white marble overseas. It was Lord Curzon, the British viceroy of India, who put and to this. Rather than looting the Taj Mahal, Curzon worked to restore it. The Taj Mahal Now The Taj Mahal has once again become a magnificent place with 2.5 million visitors each year. People can visit during the daytime and watch as the white marble appears to take on different hues throughout the day. Once a month, visitors have the opportunity to make a short visit during a full moon to see how the Taj Mahal seems to glow from the inside out in the moonlight. The Taj Mahal was placed on the World Heritage List by UNESCO in 1983, but this protection has not guaranteed its safety. It is now at the mercy of pollutants from nearby factories and excessive humidity from the breath of its visitors.   Sources DuTemple, Lesley A.  The Taj Mahal. Lerner Publications Company, 2003.Harpur, James, and Jennifer Westwood.  The Atlas of Legendary Places. 1st ed., Weidenfeld Nicholson, 1989.Ingpen, Robert R., and Philip Wilkinson.  Encyclopedia of Mysterious Places: The Life and Legends of Ancient Sites Around the World. Metro Books, 2000.