Bio - ethics

121086 Lee So Yoon

Table of Contents1. Definition of bio – ethics2. Two types of bio – ethics 2-1. Medical Ethics a. definition b. the Hippocratic Oath 2-2. Bio – medical ethics a. definition b. 4 principles of bio – medical ethics 3. Questions & Themes

What is bio – ethics?

1. Bio – ethics is a combination of the words bio(=life) and ethics and deals with the moral problems raised as technology develops

2. There are two types of bio – ethics re-garding the content it deals with

2-1. medical ethics 2-2. bio – medical ethics

Medical Ethics1. it deals with various ethical problems that happens in the medical field e.g. medical treatment2. The developed medical technology such as human genes project, cloning and so on is being debated on their morality, and this is what med-ical ethics deals about3. Also, medical ethics deals with moral issues that relate to human dignity such as the treat-ment for people in coma , euthanasia etc.

The Hippocratic Oath1. The Hippocratic Oath is an oath taken by physicians

about the ethical practice of medicine.2. Whoever the writer of the oath is, the fact that the

oath is considered a rite of passage for doctors / anyone who deals with medicine

3. Includes clauses such as … to never deliberately do harm to anyone for anyone else’s interest / to avoid violating he morals of my community / to keep the good of the patient as the highest priority / to keep confidential all private patient information -> sets a basis for modern bio – ethics

Bio – medical ethics1. Definition : critically examining the ethical level of de-cision making regarding biology or human health. (Samuel Gorovitz, Bioethics and Social Responsibility)2. It deals with topics that are related to diverse areas, so it is important to solve the problems in a delicate manner 3. Bio – medical ethics is not theoretical but deals with real – life decisions that doctors have to make when they face those situations which requires moral judge-ment4. If a doctor doesn’t have a righteous ethical sense and standard , he has a high chance of making an immoral decision / mistake

The 4 principles of bio – medical ethics

1. The principle of Respect for Autonomy2. The principle of non maleficence3. The principle of beneficence4. The principle of justice

The principle of Respect for AutonomyMedical treatment should be practiced under the consent of the pa-tient, respecting their autonomyIn order to respect their will, we must KNOW what their will is BUT here comes the problem..1. Medical treatment requires high medical knowledge but the pa-

tient doesn’t usually have that, and is it right to respect their choices fully just because we’re living in a free and democratic society?

2. Also, premising that the doctor tells the patient about all the in-formation related to his or her disease, is this morally right?

3. What if telling the truth can weaken the patient’s health and have a bad influence on them?

4. What if the patient is unable to express their will for they are in the state of coma or etc. ?

5. Can the doctor use placebo effect to enhance the condition of the patient?

The Principle of Non maleficence1. Maleficence = harmful influence in mental & physical ways to the patient2. since our abilities are limited ,there are inevitable cases when the doctors have to practice “maleficence” e.g.) organ donation -> causes physical harm to one person but is necessary to save the life of the other pa-tient3. the act of murder – active or passive is also a question worth thinking aboute.g. your cat starved to death because you didn’t give it any food -> did we kill it or leave it to die? – there is no united point made by scholars

The principle of beneficence1. Doctors can interfere with patients considering the increase of the quality of their lives e.g. euthanasia2. The principle of beneficence goes against the principle of autonomy – therefore, have to know WHAT is GOOD for the patient(which we call qual-ity of life usually)3. What is the quality of life? 4. Does the doctor have the moral duty of good deeds?

The principle of justice

1. The distribution of medical resources – microscopic level & macroscopic level 1-1. Micro – the decisions of the real beneficiary / to whom and how should the medical resources be distributed? 1-2.Macro – how much budget for the ministry of health & welfare / who is going to pay for this? / what kind of medical insurance system should the gov-ernment implement?2. Does human have the right to a decent minimum of health care? And if humans do, what is the standard?

Questions & Themes

1. What kind of national or international movements have taken place to deal with bio – ethics?

2. Controversial issues & how they are viewed & solutions or answers

3. History of bio – ethics(origin & devel-opment)