Question

This assignment is designed to provoke thought about autonomy of one's body and the associated laws that govern decision making.

https://www.yahoo.com/health/one-womans-quest-to-die-with-dignity-and-what-it-means-99374572007.html

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/court-hears-case-of-teen-refusing-cancer-treatment/ and http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/17-year-old-girl-refuses-cancer-treatment-state-forces-her-to-undergo-treatment.454356503/

Chapters 5 and 6 emphasizes the importance of patient choice based on an individual's need to achieve a since of control and empowerment. Notice if you find yourself judging too quickly or harshly the care options and dying styles chosen by someone who is terminally ill. Even though a patient's choice may seem wrong or odd to you for any number of reasons, it is important to acknowledge that a critical aspect of such choices is that they may not be made solely by the health care providers or family members.

Click on the URLs above. What are your thoughts on this topic? Should people have the right to decide how or when they die? How is the woman's journey in the first article different from the young lady in the second article? Are these issues legal or moral? Construct a well written commentary between 400- 450 words that addresses both articles and the information in the text book.

Make your initial post by Wednesday at 2:00 PM. Read one of your peers commentary whose views differ from yours and engage in a discussion with that student. This means, you need to make your initial post (your commentary), engage in a discussion with someone whose views differ from yours, and respond to whoever makes a comment to your commentary. You have until Saturday at midnight to participate in this discussion.

Answer 1

This article talks about the importance of a patient being able to make a decision regarding their health by themself. Every human has a choice of what they would like to do. When it comes to medical care and specially deadly diseases like cancer, it is touch to make a decision but the patient needs to be given that authority as he is the one suffering and it is his life. It also gives them a sense of being in control and thinking they have a chance. Even though we might be unable to understand where they are coming from, we can not override their decision. This is a very personal choice they need to make. I think every person to should have the right to decide if they want to die, in case they are terminally ill, suffering from an incurable disease, are in pain etc. Of course there will be legal isses because if the 17 year old girl decided to refuse cancer treatment it can be said that she is underage and not mature to make this decision. However, if she was over 18, would the court have ruled differently? They would still have said that she needs to start treatment. What about the person's right to choice here? Therefore this is a very complex issue with many layers to it and needs to be dealth with accordingly.