Ethical perspectives are ways that individuals use to view a problem and make a decision. In our case, the nurse has a terminal illness patient who is going through a lot of pain and the patient begs for more morphine to help her end her life quickly. The dilemma is should the nurse administer morphine to a family-less patient in great pain? It is the responsibility of the nurse to save lives and not to take them away. This essay discusses different ethical perspectives that can be used to respond the dilemma. These perspectives include utilitarianism ethical theory, right-based theory of ethics and Kantian theory of ethics (Kantianism).
Utilitarian Theory of Morality
This is an ethical theory that supports actions that brings happiness or pleasure for many people and disagrees with actions that might hurt people (Kahane & Everett, 2020). From the case, the nurse is facing a dilemma on whether to give more morphine to take his life faster to save the patient from undue pain. Based on the theory, the general happiness and pleasure of the patient is paramount because they have no living family member.
Rights-based theory of ethics
The rights-based theory emphasizes human independence and recognizes a list of rights – both positive and negative. Anything mentioned in the U.S. Bill of Rights, the U.N.’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and AMA’s Code of Medical Ethics is considered to be a human right (Smuha, 2021). The patient has the right to life, so the nurse cannot administer morphine to end their life regardless of the severity of the pain.
Kantian Theory of Ethics (Kantianism)
According to Kant, all rational beings are bound together by one moral law, and the moral law is the truth of reason. Hence, one should act rationally when seeking a solution to a problem (Sebo, 2022). The most rational approach the nurse could take would be to administer the patient with morphine and alleviate their pain. This is considered more of mercy killing and relieve of pain from a person.
In conclusion, based on the first theory of utilitarianism, it is ethical for the nurse to give the patient more morphine because it brings happiness and pleasure to the patient. According to right-based theory, the nurse has no right to take the life of the patient because of their life to life instead they should let the will of God to prevail. Kant theory grants the request to administer more morphine as a way to show mercy for the patient by saving them from the pain they are going through.
References
Everett, J. A., & Kahane, G. (2020). Switching tracks? Towards a multidimensional model of utilitarian psychology. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 24(2), 124-134. Web.
Sebo, J. (2022). Kantianism for humans, utilitarianism for nonhumans? Yes and no. Philosophical Studies, 1-20. Web.
Smuha, N. (2021). “Beyond a human rights-based approach to AI governance: Promise, pitfalls, plea.” Philosophy & Technology 34(1), 91-104. Web.