End of Life Issues
Please write a 2-3 paper addressing the following topics based on the case study of Mr. Martinez Please address the following topics: 1. Articulate the moral issues associated with limiting life support. 2. Demonstrate sound ethical thinking and relevant ethical principles when considering limiting life support. 3. Explain important considerations that arise when contemplating limiting life support. CASE STUDY: “Mr. Martinez was a seventy-five-year-old chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patient. He was in the hospital because of an upper respiratory tract infection. He and his wife had requested that CPR not be performed should he require it. A DNR order was written in the charts. In his room on the third floor, he was being maintained with antibiotics, fluids, and oxygen and seemed to be doing better. However, Mr. Martinez’s oxygen was inadvertently turned up, and this caused him to go into respiratory failure. When found by the therapist, he was in terrible distress and lay gasping in his bed.” In a 23 page analysis of the case study, address the following: The patient’s directives. The patient’s quality of life. The family’s stated preferences. The moral issues associated with limiting life support. The ethical principles most relevant to reaching an ethically sound decision. Important considerations such as implications, justifications, and any conflicts of interest that might arise because of the patient’s respiratory failure.
