Presumed consent in organ donation

Discussion in 'Ethics, Morality, & Justice' started by GeoffP, Jun 30, 2010.

  1. S.A.M. uniquely dreadful Valued Senior Member

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    Is a DNR any different?



    And we're back again to the Hippocratic oath and patients who want to die for religious or other reasons.

    Doctors usually see the human body in a detached way - they'd have to, to be objective - for them, the subjective aspects are less important than what they can do to prolong life and alleviate disease. The kind of doctors who ignore DNRs are the kind who don't give up on their patients and the notion that they can recover and once again, enjoy what life has to give. In my opinion and experience, those are the best kind of doctors.
     
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  3. phlogistician Banned Banned

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    Being willing to donate organs post mortem should be one of the qualifications for living in civilisation. Don't want to donate, don't get civilisation. They can go live in a cave.
     
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  5. iceaura Valued Senior Member

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    Not for me or those I care about.

    A doctor who abets and prolongs and intensifies the suffering of the dying against their will is in the same moral and ethical category as a medieval witchburner, purifying the soul of the witch through fire - for their own good, of course.

    The arrogance involved is a species of insanity. That kind of decision is not theirs to make.

    The fact that people cannot always trust doctors to abide by DNRs and the like, is one of the factors in people's reluctance to agree in advance to donate their organs. They are signing over control of the fate of their body to people they can't trust.
     
    Last edited: Jul 4, 2010
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  7. S.A.M. uniquely dreadful Valued Senior Member

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    I generally expect a doctor to abide by the Hippocratic oath, ie do no harm. Trust issues I think are a general problem in American society. Not just with healthcare but also governance and law enforcement. Its a problem in the society itself, I think.
     
  8. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

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    Fundamental differences

    A DNR, as we both know, refers to "Do Not Resuscitate". I'm asking you to look at that last word. Resuscitate. Do not jump start the flat line.

    This is the opposite of opt out, which orders a doctor to not maintain the bouncy ball.

    However, in terms of the section of my post you quoted, that is the response to the specific question: "How is opting out of an organ donation [to/for] a matter of public policy?"

    They also include folks like Dr. Bill Frist, also formerly known as Senator Bill Frist. As in the guy who was completely capable of misdiagnosing Terry Schiavo from a videotape in order to stage a completely useless and embarrassing federal intervention over human self-determination.

    It's a mixed bag. But in the long run, I see the DNR in fundamentally terms than the opt-out/exclusion scheme.
     
  9. Cowboy My Aim Is True Valued Senior Member

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    So your idea of civilization is based on the notion that, when push comes to shove, "society" owns your body? I might prefer the cave...if it was given full political autonomy.
     

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