Question

Assume that you are a healthcare administrator, and you find yourself dealing with this exact issue regarding a patient giving birth in your facility.

Prepare a 500-word paper, double-spaced and in APA style that presents the most important legal and ethical issues relevant to this topic from both perspectives. And then state your position on this issue and describe how you will handle it in your hospital.

Copy and Paste. Please do not use any prior answers.

Thanks.

Answer 1

Fetal rights and policies have been an ongoing debate over a long period of time. Fetus has been regarded to have separate rights from their biological mothers. The raging debate by policy makers, women and children rights has been lean towards children suing their parents for prenatal care negligence and protection.

Necessity of Punishments

Though policies and punishments can be put in place, mothers should be educated on why the health of their fetus is a basic need to both the mother and child. Policies can be implemented and legal options provided; the mothers are to be made to understand why those needs are a priority. Maternal responsibility to the fetus needs to originate from the mother and not an external person, organization government etc.

Internal emotions and feelings come from the mother who in a knowledge may decide to pursue some decisions that are harmful to the fetus. Educating the mother on what is best for the child is a necessity that is crucial before any policy or punishment is issued to the mother. Every patient has a right to information. That right especially for pregnant mothers is crucial to their fetus.

“Should a drug addict expectant mother be charged at a court of law for endangering her fetus?” This is a human question that all medical practitioners struggle with, “yes a mother should be charged with negligence and child endangerment”. A minor has the state has the guardian to protector and defender to their lives apart from their mothers who in these case have endangered the minor lives. Such are the instances that mothers should be punished for endangering their children’s rights.

Pregnant mothers should therefore not regard their bodies as their own at this season. Their bodies are at “sharing terms “though this is not legal a human approach is needed. Center for Reproductive rights in their article states that 21 of the 22 states, the courts have ruled in favor of the mothers and not regarded the child/fetus to have any legal rights apart from what the “mother thinks is the fetus rights”. Most courts including high courts ruling on cases pertaining mothers behavior during pregnancy have ruled on “statutory construction”, grounds.

The silent war on fetal protection will continue to rage as the policies on women rights are seen to stand in the way of protecting these unborn children. The women’s right to privacy procreate and bodily integrity challenges a fetus right to anything. Exposure to poor diet, smoking, and drug abuse are all issues that the courts contend with everyday in order to find a lasting solution to fetal protection. Harmonizing both sides of the law to having both the mother and fetus having common laws that bind them are lasting solutions to the debate.

Conclusion

A mother should therefore, be charged with fetal risk endangerment .Her life and the baby are bound and since she is the brains behind the sharing body “team” her decisions should be held accountable and challenged if need arises. A mother and the fetus should be treated to have equal rights to life and the body.

References

Center for Reproductive rights 2000: –Punishing women for their reproductive rights

Elaine A. Lisko (1998) , Health Law & Policy Institute: Should Pregnant Women be Subject to Criminal Prosecution for Activities that are Harmful to Their Fetuses 06/23

Young, I. M . (1994). Punishment, treatment, and empowerment: Three approaches to policy for pregnant addicts. Feminist Studies, 20(1), 33.