Ethical Decision Memorandum, Essay Example

Question Presented

To what extent, keeping in mind the complicated issues that include tissue type matching, the long wait for transplantable organs, and related issues, be applied to the situation of transplanting organs, which are in short supply and are only fresh for a rather short period of time?

Brief Answer

At whatever cost necessary. According to Utilitarian ethics, expediting the process to ensure that many people are saved allows individuals as a collective group to realize the advantages of transplantable organs.  Sacrificing the greater good for implementing measures that can undermine the well-being of these organs cannot occur. Thus, we must follow in these ethics and proceed onward to implementing these organs as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

Discussion

It is extremely clear that there are many factors that complicate the matter of transportable organs.  To begin with, we do not have a steady supply of such organs, which are usually obtained through some type of emergency.  There are also complications in the process of matching organs with recipients that must be taken into account.

However, leading into these discussions it becomes clear that time is of the essence.  We cannot undermine efforts for the transportable organs to reach recipients from the moment the donor has been identified with the appropriate organ(s). Thus, this is the crucial matter in this discussion.

Complications are indeed found in timing, though. Tissue type matching poses complications to ensure such organs will be received in the recipient’s body.  In this we find difficulties in determining just how long these individuals can wait.

The question becomes thus centered on quickly matching such organs, or ensuring that each is as close to perfect as possible. Each choice has its difficulties, however.  Ironically the theme of time becomes relevant in each choice.

Ensuring that each is close to perfect as possible comes at a great deal of risk.  If we are to proceed with this choice, events may drag out too long for the recipient to safely receive the organ.  Of course, the recipient cannot wait too long for the organ, or it will not be able to received, posing problems.

This method is more in line with deontological ethics, such as those proposed by Kant.  Kant proposes that morally correct actions are given by adhering to duty.  Thus, in every possible organ transplant, care must be taken to ensure a perfect match, as a matter of medical duty.

The preferred choice advocated in this memo is one of quick and efficient transplants.  In order to ensure that all who are waiting for transplants are able to receive them, it is advocated here that it be done in the most efficient way possible, erring on the side of quick timing.  While care should be taken, the most important thing in this situation is to initiate the process of an organ transplant as quickly as possible from our perspective.

Following Utilitarian ethics, the greater good must be taken into account in this situation.  We cannot allow organs to go to waste, which is what is more likely to occur in the choice previously outlined.  While every measure taken should help ensure the safety of the recipient, it outweighs the benefits to allow the process to take too long.

The greatest happiness, as found in the though of John Stuart Mill, is most important here.  This means that we should keep the welfare of those who are waiting for organ transplants in mind.  From this, it follows that the transplant process should be initiated as quickly as possible.

This choice will allow many more people to achieve happiness.  While there are likely to be a few cases of an improper match, we expect these to be relatively uncommon.  Thus, the greater happiness of the population is kept in the highest regard.

Contrasted with the previous choice, the choice not taken would waste too many of our resources.  There is not a great supply of transplantable organs available to us; thus, we cannot choose a process that will take too long.  A process that takes too long means that far less people would have the opportunity to receive the organ, which would undermine the principle of greatest happiness.

In this dynamic we have chose to expedite the process.  This will keep the happiness of our patients in highest regard. We expect that many successful transplants will take place, certainly more than out other choice, and thus in the spirit of Utilitarian ethics.