Bioethics: The Right to Die, Euthanasia, and Standards of Death

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering definitions, distinctions, arguments, and standards concerning euthanasia, the right to die, and definitions of death based on lecture notes.

Euthanasia

The practice of bringing about death for the sake of the one who dies, originating from the Greek prefix eu- (good, well) and thanatos (death).

Voluntary Euthanasia

Bringing about death with the informed consent of the patient.

Nonvoluntary Euthanasia

Bringing about death when the patient is unable to consent or dissent.

Involuntary Euthanasia

Bringing about death when the patient actively dissents or possesses decisional capacity but was not consulted.

Passive Euthanasia

Bringing about death by withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining treatment; legal in many countries and all US states.

Active Euthanasia

Bringing about death by administering a lethal treatment; legal in a few countries and no US states.

Physician-Assisted Suicide

A procedure where a doctor supplies the patient with the means to die, but the patient administers them; legal in a few countries and some US states.

Conventional Doctrine

The doctrine stating that passive euthanasia is sometimes morally permissible, but active euthanasia is never morally permissible.

James Rachels

A philosopher ($1941$-$2003$) who rejects the conventional doctrine, arguing that active and passive euthanasia are morally equivalent and that both should be permitted.

Argument from Being Humane

James Rachels's argument that active euthanasia should be permissible because it reduces suffering more effectively than passive euthanasia.

Irrelevant Criteria Argument

James Rachels's argument that permitting only passive euthanasia causes life-and-death choices to be based on irrelevant factors, exemplified by withholding surgery for an intestinal blockage in an infant due to Down syndrome.

Bare Difference Argument

James Rachels's argument that killing (active euthanasia) and letting someone die (passive euthanasia) are morally equivalent, with no inherent moral distinction.

The Bathtub (or Nasty Uncles) Case

A thought experiment showing that Smith (who drowns his nephew) and Jones (who lets his nephew drown after an accidental fall) are equally morally culpable despite one killing and one letting die.

Dan Brock

A philosopher who argues that active euthanasia should be allowed based on self-determination, respect for patient autonomy, and individual well-being.

J. David Velleman

A philosopher who argues against the right to die by asserting that providing the option of euthanasia can directly harm individuals.

Harm by Expression (Velleman)

One of Velleman's mechanisms of harm whereby offering an option sends an undesirable message or implication, comparable to offering someone a breath mint or extra help.

Harm by Pressure (Velleman)

One of Velleman's mechanisms of harm whereby the sheer existence of an option makes the recipient vulnerable to social or internal pressure to take it.

Harm of Depriving Unchosen Outcomes (Velleman)

One of Velleman's mechanisms of harm occurring when offering an option strips away the default status of an outcome, forcing an individual to explicitly choose to stay alive.

Definition (Conception) of Death

The philosophical explanation of what death fundamentally is: the permanent loss of integrated functioning of an organism as a whole.

Standard (Criterion) of Death

The criterion that determines what conditions must be satisfied to fulfill the definition of death.

Cardiopulmonary Standard

A standard defining death as the irreversible cessation of circulation and respiration.

Whole-Brain Standard

The mainstream standard defining death as the irreversible loss of all brain function.

Higher-Brain Standard

A proposed standard defining death as the irreversible loss of the capacity for consciousness.

Tests for Death

Specific clinical procedures applied to determine if a death standard is met, including checking pulses, mirror condensation, reflexes, spontaneous respiration, and flat EEG.

Practical Argument for the Whole-Brain Standard

The ethical defense that the whole-brain standard is preferable because it frees ICU beds, lessens family burdens, and enables more organ transplants.

Philosophical Rationale for the Whole-Brain Standard

The argument that because the brain is responsible for maintaining an organism's integrated functioning, irreversible loss of all brain function equates to the permanent loss of integrated functioning.

Dead Donor Rule (DDR)

An ethical mandate stating that an individual must be dead before vital organs are procured for transplantation, and procurement must not cause the patient's death.

Sanctity of Life Ethic

An ethical framework holding that all human lives possess intrinsic value, have an equal claim to preservation, and that intentionally ending an innocent human life is always wrong.

Peter Singer

A utilitarian philosopher who rejects both the Dead Donor Rule and the sanctity of life ethic, maintaining that moral choices must maximize net pleasure rather than uphold absolute rules on human life.