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Ethical Dilemma
Term Paper ID:35895
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Essay Subject:
This paper explores the issues surrounding a pregnant woman s decision whether to abort ...... More...
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3 Pages / 675 Words
3 sources, 7 Citations,
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Paper Abstract:
This paper explores the issues surrounding a pregnant woman’s decision whether to abort a fetus she knows will be born with Down’s Syndrome. The paper reviews the medical community’s focus on the treatability or not of the child’s medical problems as opposed to the other quality of life issues a child with a genetic abnormality might possess. The paper concludes that the worthiness of the child’s life exceeds its medical problems and, therefore, the paper argues against abortion under these circumstances.
Paper Introduction:
Ethical Dilemma AbstractThis paper explores the issues surrounding a pregnant woman\'s decisionwhether to abort a fetus she knows will be born with Down\'s Syndrome Thepaper reviews the medical community\'s focus on the treatability or not ofthe child\'s medical problems as opposed to the other quality of life issuesa child with a genetic abnormality might possess The paper concludes thatthe worthiness of the child\'s life exceeds its medical problems and therefore the paper argues against abortion under these circumstances The decision to have
Text of the Paper:
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The respect all human life deservesdoes not depend on any person "possessing only that sort of genetic makeupwhich guarantees normal human functioning" (Burtt, 2 1, p. But amniocentesis is usuallynot performed until the fetus is approximately 15 to 16 weeks, with afurther 2-week delay for the results (Mennuti, 1996, p. Doctors can detect genetic abnormalities in fetuses using severaltechniques, one of which is amniocentesis. In talking abouther experience raising a child with Down's Syndrome, Burtt makes clear theimportance of what science cannot control. Onepediatrician who wrote about her experience of terminating her pregnancywhen she learned that her third child would be born with chromosomaldefects stated that she underwent, in many respects, the same period ofmourning as had someone who had lost a child already born (JAMA-1, 1989, p.2735). 17, 1989). Thus, awoman has had more than four months to live with the knowledge that she ispregnant. For many women, the termination of a pregnancy is not the end of herdecision, but rather the beginning of a period of mourning, guilt and loss. The decision to abort a child under these circumstances will subject awoman to a host of emotions for which she will likely be unprepared.Bioethicists agree that potential parents should be given as muchinformation as doctors can provide about the potential medical health ofunborn children because parents should have the autonomy to decide whetherthey will bring a child into the world (Burtt, 2 1, p. She will probably have included the unborn child in her familyplanning for the near future. "The choice." The Journal of the American Medical Association, 262, 19: 2735.Mennuti, M. But even when thepregnancy is planned, and the woman has made all the lifestyle and economicpreparations she can for the birth of her child, there are still manyfactors involved in her pregnancy that she cannot control. The decision to have a child always entails a leap of faith. "Which babies?" Tikkun, 16, 1: 45.JAMA-1. 45). The problem inherent in aborting a fetus because it possesses geneticabnormalities is that the decision to abort is a decision that some livesare not worth living. "A 35-year-old pregnant woman considering maternal serum screening and amniocentesis." The Journal of the American Medical Association, 275, 1: 144 -47. But another is the entirespectrum of emotions any child, genetically "normal" or not, can bring tothe lives of those who care for it. Thus, learning that the child has Down'sSyndrome involves more than the decision whether to abort an anonymousfetus. Rather, the woman must decide whether to abort her child. 45). Under thelaws of the United States, a 35-year-old woman who becomes pregnant has thechoice whether or not to carry the child to term. The paper concludes thatthe worthiness of the child's life exceeds its medical problems and,therefore, the paper argues against abortion under these circumstances. But doctorscannot tell a pregnant woman what course to choose (Burtt, 2 1, p. One of these isthe genetic "normality" or not of the fetus. Burtt contends that offering abortion as analternative because a fetus is detected to be carrying Down's Syndromereflects the values of a society that devalues the lives of those whosecapacities fall outside the normal range (2 1, p. Aborting a child under these circumstances involves the loss of themother's picture of a healthy child, as well as the guilt associated withbeing the one who made the decision to end that child's life. She may even consider the child already tobe a member of her family. Shelley Burtt, who decided to carry a Down's Syndrome baby to term,argues that medical providers are rarely neutral when it comes to choosingbetween bringing an abnormal fetus to term or ending the pregnancy and"trying again" because they view genetic abnormality as a medical"problem." They are not trained to advise prospective parents to lookbeyond the now troubled pregnancy to the joys and rewards as well as theheartache and challenge that comes from accepting and raising a child withspecial needs (Burtt, 2 1, p. 45). Thepaper reviews the medical community's focus on the treatability or not ofthe child's medical problems as opposed to the other quality of life issuesa child with a genetic abnormality might possess. The choices medicine can make available to a womanwho is carrying a baby with Down's Syndrome cannot include the joys andemotions that child could bring to its family. 45). Burtt found that raising herchild forced her to reconsider her definition of the qualities andcapacities that made life worthwhile. ReferencesBurtt, S. Children are more than the sum oftheir biological parts. 2 1). Ethical Dilemma AbstractThis paper explores the issues surrounding a pregnant woman's decisionwhether to abort a fetus she knows will be born with Down's Syndrome. 45). (Nov. (May 8, 1996). (Jan. 144 ).
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