Prolonging Life Essay

Abstract This term paper will discuss Prolonging Life, death & dying, patients and their families as well as the removal of life support. This paper is also discussing the pros and cons, the debates. Prolonging Life is one of the debates we have had for centuries. Even when doctors say it is enough families still fight to prolong life. Death has ceases to be a private struggle but has rather become a public affair involving teams of physicians. Theirs is many different medical ethical issues involving prolonging life. For years families and hospitals have fought on how to treat critically ill patients. Some families fight to keep their loved ones alive and on life support, while some doctors well suggest other wise; and sometime it is also the other way around. Life support technology has advanced, allowing physicians to prolong lives in circumstances that were not possible before. However, Family members and legal proxies well be called to make a decision for those patients who aren’t able to speak or for those who are in a coma. Therefore emotional and ethical confusion often cloud the decision-makers mind and heart in these circumstances. Consider this scenario: An elderly woman of the age of 67 decided to write out her living well in which she clearly states she does not want to be resuscitated or be put on life support. Three days later she was rushed to the hospital for a critical heart attack which put her in a coma. There was nothing the doctors could do and was put on a ventilator. Her husband refused to take her of life support even when he knew about her living well. The doctors decided to give him some time to grieve and think about it. Three days passed with no hope of recovery for the elderly women and the doctors tried to approach the husband once again about his wife’s condition. He still refused to take her off life support. However the doctors gave him a few more days. By the end of the week the doctors decided to take her off life Prolonging Life 4 support. The scenario is one of many debates in which everyone would have their own opinions about. In which has happen plenty of time.