Subject of Research: Medical Ethics and Christianity

Ethics Dialogue Assignment: These next 6 links are to a variety of articles on ethics. They move from Secular Ethics, to Christian Ethics, then on to Medical Ethics, and finally arrive at the subject of this course, Christian or Biblical Medical Ethics. 1. Construct a 50 - 75 word, strong definition of each area of ethics - Secular, Christian, Medical, and Christian Medical. 2. Write 175 - 200 words comparing AND contrasting secular and Christian ethics. 3. Write 175 - 200 words comparing AND contrasting medical and Christian medical ethics. 4. Write 100 - 150 words as to why a solid Biblical Worldview is critical to have before you can be guided by Christian Medical Ethics?

For example, the Hippocratic oat, the prayer of Moses Maimonides, the bible, the Holy Koran, and the Islamic legacy, as well as cultures, traditions, and social morality have shaped and guided the development of ethical standards in the medical profession. The majority of these historical documents focus on “avoiding harm to patients” Ethics refers to a professional moral conduct. Ethics, particularly professional ethics, describes the moral actions based on professional character and ethical principles in each profession. The statements of medical ethics require the health care providers to do what is best for the patient and place the patients’ interests before the interests of the physician. Above all, the purpose of medical ethics is to protect and defend human dignity and patients’

A 35-year-old man named Paul, who has a supportive wife and two adventurous kids, has been diagnosed with a very severe case of bone cancer for 1 year now. Since this type of cancer is so severe, chemotherapy is starting to not work as well. Paul’s oncologist unfortunately had to suggest a final option for Paul to try which was a clinical research trial. Clinical research trials are experimental studies that deem whether or not a medical drug, treatment, surgery, or device is safe and beneficial for humans to use ("National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute"). As explained in Marcia Angell’s Article, “The Ethics of Clinical Research in the Third World”, the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Health Organization (WHO) provides a guideline

There are numerous morally sensitive issues affecting advanced practice. Since I am completing my women’s health rotation, morally sensitive subjects in this area include elective abortions, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, and teenage pregnancy. During my rotation, I did not encounter any of these morally sensitive issues; however these issues affect advanced practice because NPs are mandated reporters and would have to report signs or suspicions of any kind of abuse on children, the elderly or the disabled. Also, NPs should act as educators, educating patients on safe sex practices and preventing unwanted pregnancies. In the event that a teenager becomes pregnant or a patient request an abortion, NPs need to act with compassion and be non-judgmental

As a Christian Institution, students will need to learn a Biblical basis for medical ethics, something that many

For most of the world's population, a disease is understood to be a physical issue, aside from mental illnesses. Viruses and bacteria are responsible for infections, tumors stem from an abnormal growth of cells, a poor diet may result in comorbidities, and so on. However, imagine a specialist explaining to you, the patient, that your symptoms of a cough, chest congestion, and fatigue are merely illusions created in the mind, to which the cure is overcoming your mental belief that you are sick at all. This alternative idea of disease and treatment comes from the religion of Christian Science, and along with its highly controversial healing practices, the church demonstrates two bioethical issues: are people seeking treatment in the church due to frustration with the current medical system, or are members afraid to seek professional medical help due to disapproval from the church? In examining these issues, first, the Christian Science doctrine must be understood, then the history surrounding the religion's creation, and finally how the two tie into today's bioethical problems.

While religion can be used to rationalize superstitions that are counterproductive to good health outcomes, religious organizations provided the primary source of healthcare for people throughout much of history. In Europe medical care was closely tied to Christianity. During the fourth century, St. Basil opened a hospital for lepers that was emulated throughout the middle ages by monasteries throughout the continent (Jonson, 1999, p. 15). The idea of medical equity was presented in part through this lens: in a passage from Christian texts inspired by the Hippocratic treatises, it was written, “The physician should not heal for the sake of gain, nor give more consideration to the rich than to the poor, or to the noble than the ignoble” (Jonson, p. 18). Within the Indian tradition, analogues to the Hippocratic treatises arose in the form of the Samhitas, which were written by physicians with Hindu perspectives. One passage reads “Day and night, you shall strive for the relief of the patient with all your heart and soul. You shall not desert or injure your patient even for the sake of life or living” (Jonson, p. 30). Buddhist monasteries served purposes similar to those of Christian monasteries in the West. In contrast to taboos imposed on Hindu physicians, Buddhist monks were not as limited in their care by a system of caste discrimination (Jonson, p. 31). Sometimes, however, the religious roots of medicine brought the risk of moralizing’s impact upon patient care; Cotton Mather, an American preacher, wrote of patients stricken with the sexually contracted syphilis “As for any remedies under this foul disease,-You are so foul to me, I’ll do nothing for you” (p.

The principlism is referred to as “‘the Bible of academic medical ethics” because it is the fundamental framework from which the practice of medicine is based on (Evans, 62-63). Comparing the common moral principlism to the Bible is also insightfully profound as the Bible is a subjective account of what ought to be. Bioethicists put their confidence in the common moral principlism just as believers of the faith put their trust in the Bible despite the fact that both articles are biased toward the viewpoint of their creators. Evans argues that “[principlism] was invented because the inventors believed it was the best way to make ethical decisions” (Evans, 47). The problem here is that the guideline that is supposed to govern all of medical practices objectively is undeniably subjective in origin. Thus, the common moral principlism and Bible should not be compared because they help us make moral choices, but because they force upon us what is considered

Over the last several weeks, this course has supplied me with a deeper knowledge of how, when, and why research is applied in behavioral studies. The answers to these questions have also provoked me to examine how Christianity and behavioral research can support one another. Specifically, the integration of research and Christianity has led me to believe that every method, type, and step to research leads one closer to the truth, truth that effectuates positive changes to mankind while encouraging a willingness, respect, and discipline to please the Lord in every pursuit. Thus, this case study will reflect on the knowledge that I have gained throughout this course as well as how this knowledge can be supported through a Christian Biblical perspective.

One key aspect of Theology which has impacted the way I will practise as a health care professional is Christian Anthropology. The Aspect of Christian Anthropology sets a grounding for health care ethics. Through this aspect of christian anthropology we learn that humans are covenantal and therefore the human person is understood through relationships with god and humanity. This explains the importance of being in relationships with other people and treating these people in the likeness of God with love, compassion and justice. As nursing is a people profession dealing with people is a daily occurrence and having a understanding of this covenantal aspect allows me to treat not only my patients but co-workers with love the way God did. Even when difficult situations arise and patients become difficult to have a relationship with which was explored in week 10 in the building bridges not walls article. This article explained Christians are called to acknowledge the human dignity of all people, even those who have done great harm through their crimes. Having a understanding of this aspect and the importance of treating every human with respect and love allows me to reminds myself of my profession and to follow this principle. This aspect also allows me to gain a better understand of differences in humanity and the importance of respecting different cultures and different social groups and still treating these people with love and respect. This aspect has also

There are many ethical issues in the healthcare field. These issues range from insurance coverage, senior care, childhood immunizations, beneficence, abortion, medicinal marijuana, honesty and medical research (Fritzsche, D., 2004). Today we will discuss the ethical concerns in only one aspect of heath care and that topic is research (Benatar, S., 2000). Medical research is necessary in order to make strides in health care, introduce new medications, to discover new symptoms and disorders and to test new treatment options for current medical problems. Students of medicine, universities and pharmaceutical companies conduct this research primarily. Much of this research is time consuming and costly, therefore obtaining funding is not

There is something that I don't like and it is happening in the world right now. What I don't like religion conflicts such as people get killed in other countries for being Christian. That is something that gets me upset because people are free to be what they want. Everyone is different from other because that's how they are. There shouldn't be a problem and being Christian is something good because you follow the word of God and His 10 comandments that are in the bible. I am christian, I am a Seventh Day Adventist and I follow God's word. Also like in other countries such as in those places on the other side of the world where they are not allowed to be Christian, that is not fair. I think they should change that because we all

The first thing God helped me to realize was that I should not start with medical ethics at all. I had to help each of us, teacher and students, to consider our worldview. Is it secular like most of society or is it Biblical as it should be if we are Christians? And, if it is Biblical, how strongly so? Is it Biblical only in the “easy circumstances” and become situational when the choice becomes “too hard?” Wikipedia says that situational ethics takes into account the particular

According to the first principle, nonmaleficience, it would not be appropriate as a professional to practice medicine based on his or her own beliefs and not consider the patients feelings about the operation. In this particular case, regarding religious constrictions the doctor must decide if the patients’ needs outweigh the ethical belief of nonmaleficience. Asserting empathy in this case could prove to be a problem. How does a person wholly understand the beliefs of another when they have not been exposed to those beliefs and culture that supplied this person with their values of living? Understanding a patient’s background can significantly impact a decision. If a doctor were to treat a Jehovah Witness with blood they need to understand the impact they would be having on their patient’s life.

In society,the moral principles that conduct one's behavior of an activity to be acknowledged as right or wrong, is known as ethics. Ethics is known to be the knowledge of what would be the respectable and right way to encounter situations. In the medical profession, the term Health Care Ethics, or Bioethics, is applied from Christian knowledge as to what healing is. In Health Care Ethics for example, Jesus-the central figure around the foundations of attaining love- encountered two different versions of ethics throughout his life and showed how he exhibited his morality in such nature. The two ethics, duty ethics and ends-means ethics are ethics that Jesus himself became familiar with; they both are principles that although contrast in