13 Year Old Samantha, Essay Example

Legally 13 year old Samantha cannot make a medical decision because she is still a minor. As such, granting her wishes would be based on the philosophical premise of human rights along with the dying with dignity paradigm. The end stages of cancer are very painful. This aspect of the disease must be considered by her parents who are not in 13 year old Samantha’s pain position. Many patients select to have euthanasia because it becomes impossible for them to bear the pain. Often analgesics no longer work and they become frustrated realizing that death is imminent. If this is so allowing a loved love to have a peaceful passing rather than enduring an agonizing experience could be more rewarding for the patient.

While some countries and states in United States of America this practice is permissible, great controversies surround  the notion of whether aiding someone to die is spiritually or morally correct. Forcing Samantha to take the alternative treatment is a privilege her parents still have because she is under age. However, under the United Nations Rights of a child regulation there is a limit to which she can be coerced into accepting a treatment she does not feel will restore her to perfect health. The intervention is another experiment.

These parents feel obligated to offering Samantha the best alternatives to her desires. However, while it is difficult to accept that she has made a decision to die they should  consider the rights of a child. Also, human dignity during the terminal phases of a diseases. While some cancers are curable the stage at which Samantha’s cancer has developed the chances of a cure are slim. Therefore, her parents ought to allow her to die with some dignity free of excruciating pain.