BLOG #5. Conscience in Ethics

For many years I gave this advice to friends and people that I worked with: "let your conscience be your guide". In my mind, I was telling them to do the right thing, or maybe better stated was don't do anything that you would regret the next day. Until now, I didn't give much thought that each of us is so entirely different. I have been involved with medicine for most of my adult life and have had many occasion to discuss the moral dilemnas that we face on almost every shift that we work. It was with great interest that I read an article by Dr. Rick Bayer discussing the modern dilemnas that physicians face when dealing with terminal sedation, birth control for teenagers without parental consent and providing abortion for failed contraception. The fact that terminal sedation is legal in Oregon poses an even tougher moral/conscience dilemna. Apparently, a physician in Oregon who can't in good conscience perform terminal sedation is supposed to refer his patient to another physician who will perform the procedure. The doctor is also supposed to educate the patient on the procedures, alternatives and risks. Interestingly in Dr. Bayer's article he cites a poll of 1,000 doctors but his only negative reviews are about the male Christian doctors who go to church at least twice a month. This is a very troublesome and difficult topic for anyone whose conscience is not in alignment with Oregon state law. I can think of a myriad of situations where these decisions would put your conscience to the ultimate test. I strongly believe that the physician should put the patient's care foremost, but he should not be forced to perform procedures that his conscience tells him not to do. For more details, please refer to Dr. Bayer's article at www.alternativesmagazine.com/43/bayer.html


Arguable issue: Whether or not this post deserves 25 points towards my grade.
Conclusion: This post deserves 25 points toward my grade.
Premise: This post definitely deserves 25 points towards my grade because:

1) It is a thought provoking topic which required a good bit of reading and research.
2) It follows the given directions.
3) It shows that our journey so far has not been in vain.