Dangangao,Arlene Blessy C.

September 02, 2019

Bachelor of Science in Nursing || BIOETHICS

• ETHICS
- Greek word ethos= a characteristic way of acting. It is the branch of philosophy dealing with
human behavior, morality, and responsibilities of people to each other and to society.
Morality is what people believe to be right and good, while ethics is a critical reflection about
morality.
• BIOLOGY
-The word biology is derived from the greek words /bios/ meaning /life/ and /logos/ meaning
/study/ and is defined as the science of life and living organisms. (https://www.ntnu.edu)
- It examines how living things interact, how systems function, and how they function at a
molecular level.
• BIOETHICS
- First used by the biologist Van Rennselaer Potter.
- Bios= life ; ethos=behavior
- A science that deals with the study of the morality of human conduct concerning human life in
all its aspects from the moment of its conception to its natural end.
- Considering all aspects of human life:physiological, psychological, social, health care and
others wherein every aspect of existence should be respected and from moment it begins to the
time it naturally ends.
• HEALTH ETHICS
- Division of ethics that focuses on human health and t is more limited in scope
compared to bioethics that confines to the moral behavior in relation to health.
- Deals with ethical issues in health, health care,medicine and science. It involves discussions
about treatment choices and care options that individuals, families, and health care providers
must face. It also involves deliberating about the allocation of resources, and reflecting on the
complex moral choices arising from ongoing health care restructuring and advancing
technology. (www.nshen.ca)
• PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
- Relates to professional behavior.
- Includes the moral duty or obligation which a member of the profession owes to the public, to
his profession, to his colleagues, and to his clients.
Prevelance of Bioethical Issues In:

1. ABORTION
- Is it at all times a free choice, or are women responding to coercion in any way? Is it a free
choice to seek abortion in desperation because of poverty, violence, or lack of support? Is it only
talk about conscience?
In my own perspective, as long as the individual is fully knowledgeable how to weigh things
between good doings to wrong doings.
2. EUTHNASIA
-The Elements of Moral Philosophy” suggested that “euthanasia may be morally right” and that
“the argument can be summarized as this:
a) “The morally right thing to do, on any occasion, is whatever would bring about the greatest
balance of happiness over unhappiness;
b) On at least some occasions, the greatest balance of happiness over unhappiness may be
brought about by mercy killing;
c) Therefore, on at least some occasions, mercy killing may be morally right”.
3.SUICIDE
- Regarding the principle of respect for life, the utilitarian position, the theological principle, and
the principles of autonomy and duty to others. It concludes that short-term interventions are
justified in most cases, for example when the suicide attempt is a ‘cry for help’ and/or the
individual is ambivalent in their attempt or likely to have a mental illness.
4. BIOLOGICAL AND CLINICAL DEATH
-This apply the four approaches to ethics like; Normative wherein actions are based on the
standards of society and acts judged based on what is accepted as right or good; Description
where what people believe in and how they act are phenomenologically (experience) described;
Analytic which people analyze the concepts and methods of ethics in the light of what they
observe, believe and practice.
5.IN-VITRO FERTILIZATION
- My conception of ethically permissible behavior is based on the view that any decision is
ethically permitted if it is voluntary and does not cause gratuitous harm to others. This is
congruent with the early ethical stricture in medicine, Primum non nocere, “First, do no harm.”
However, our perception of harm must be qualified. A living being can be harmed without being
harmed in a moral sense.
6. STEM CELL TECHNOLOGY
- Embryonic stem cells offer hope for new therapies, but their use in research has been hotly
debated. Many people -scientists, doctors, and otherwise believe it is unethical to harvest
embryonic stem cells because embryos are destroyed when stem cell lines are isolated.And in
the other hand, it also involves the destruction of the human embryo.It does not respect the
dignity or right to life of the human embryo and instead treats him/her as a resource material to
be used for the treatment of others.