Ethics Essay Example
Ethics Essay Example

Ethics Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (691 words)
  • Published: September 1, 2016
  • Type: Essay
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This essay will discuss the assertion that religion and moral principles impede medical ethics in relation to Saviour Siblings. The term 'Saviour Siblings' pertains to creating a new child who shares the same genetic material as an existing child, with the aim of potentially saving their life. This subject raises ethical dilemmas and disputes, particularly when considering different religious viewpoints. Therefore, this essay will examine how diverse religious and moral principles can hinder medical ethics.

The method of Saviour Siblings has been used in numerous cases to save the life of an existing child. Two cases, the Whitakers and the Hashmis, received significant media attention. In 2000, Charlie Whitaker was born with a rare genetic condition known as 'Diamond Blackfan Anaemia'. His parents, Michelle and Jayson, sought assistance for his condition and discovered that a ste

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m cell transplant was his only hope for survival. The Whitakers tried natural conception of a 'Saviour Sibling' to improve Charlie's chances but unfortunately were unsuccessful.

Despite their license for a Saviour Sibling being rejected, Charlie's parents were determined and went to America in desperation for treatment. In the end, they managed to conceive Jamie Whitaker, who became Charlie's Saviour Sibling. By extracting blood from Jamie's umbilical cord, they successfully performed a stem cell transfusion on Charlie. By 2004, Charlie's health had greatly improved and his life was saved. Another case that received significant media attention involved Zain Hashmi, who was born with Beta Thalassaemia, a rare and fatal genetic blood disorder.

Zain required frequent blood transfusions and a bone marrow transplant to stay alive. Finding a donor with the same tissue type was crucial

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for him to generate healthy cells, but his family was unable to find a suitable match. Eventually, the Hashmis were permitted to utilize an alternative procedure based on tissue typing instead due to the hereditary nature of Beta Thalassemia and its potential impact on other children. Unfortunately, this approach proved unsuccessful, and Shahana, Zain's mother, had to discontinue her efforts to have a Saviour Sibling due to her age.

Furthermore, there exist diverse religious perspectives and principles regarding Saviour Siblings. The Church of England believes in following the teachings of the Bible and not going against God's intended nature, while still striving to act with compassion. Consequently, from their viewpoint, the Church of England would likely accept the use of Saviour Siblings as a last resort. Conversely, the Catholic Church holds a contrasting viewpoint on Saviour Siblings.

The Catholic Church opposes IVF and PGD due to the disposal of embryos. The process of creating a Saviour Sibling using PGD involves discarding perfectly healthy embryos simply because they do not match as donors, which the Catholic Church considers to be murder. The Catholic Church asserts that conceiving a child for the purpose of use, even for treatment, disregards the child's dignity and essentially transforms them into an object.

The Catholic Church is opposed to savior siblings, even as a last resort, as they view it as using a child for a specific purpose. Similarly, Islam also holds a similar view, considering savior siblings a form of cloning and stating that God has created man in the best form and bestowed upon him great honor.

Each religion has a different perspective on Saviour Siblings, which

reflects their unique religious principles. This variation in beliefs is evident when considering Bentham's concept of Utilitarianism, which aims to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. The debate surrounding Saviour Siblings revolves around the question of whether having a child for the purpose of saving another is morally justified. In light of the principles of pleasure and reason, it can be argued that accepting the idea of a saviour sibling would be the logical choice.

The consideration of the wider family's pleasure or pain must be taken into account. Situations Ethics examines the idea of having a child that would maximize the value of agape love. The situationist should not have an issue with this as long as the saviour sibling is loved as a unique individual, for "God is Love". Additionally, some non-religious perspectives view saviour siblings as entirely immoral.

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