| (cont.)
II. The Consistent Ethic and "Classical"
Medical Ethics Questions
As I noted at the outset,
the consistent ethic of life poses a challenge to
two kinds of problems. The first are "classical"
medical ethics questions which today include revolutionary
techniques from genetics to the technologies of prolonging
life. How do we define the problems and what does
it mean to address them from a Catholic perspective?
The essential question in the technological challenge
is this: In an age when we can do almost anything,
how do we decide what we should do? The even more
demanding question is: In a time when we can do anything
technologically, how do we decide morally what we
should not do? My basic thesis is this: Technology
must not be allowed to hold the health of human beings
as a hostage.
In an address in Toronto
last September, Pope John Paul II outlined three temptations
of pursuing technological development: (1)
pursuing development for its own sake, as if it were
an autonomous force with built-in imperatives for
expansion, instead of seeing it as a resource to be
placed at the service of the human family; (2)
tying technological development to the logic of profit
and constant economic expansion without due regard
for the rights of workers or the needs of the poor
and helpless; (3) linking technological
development to the pursuit or maintenance of power
instead of using it as an instrument of freedom.
The response to these temptations, as the Holy Father
pointed out, is not to renounce the technological
application of scientific discoveries. We need science
and technology to help solve the problems of humanity.
We also need to subject technological application
to moral analysis.
One of the most recent and most critical ethical
questions which impacts the quality of human life
is that of genetics, genetic counseling and engineering.
Perhaps no other discovery in medicine has the potential
so radically to change the lives of individuals and,
indeed, the human race itself.
As with most scientific achievements in medicine,
there are advantages and disadvantages to the utilization
of this theoretical knowledge and technological know-how.
Many genetic diseases can now be diagnosed early,
even in utero, and technology is also moving toward
treatment in utero. Proper use of such information
can serve to prepare parents for the arrival of a
special infant or can allay the fears of the expectant
parents if the delivery of a healthy infant can be
anticipated. The accumulation of scientific data can
lead to a better understanding of the marvels of creation
and to the possible manipulation of genes to prevent
disease or to effect a cure before the infant sustains
a permanent disability.
On the other hand, people also use available diagnostic
procedures to secure information for the sex selection
of their children. Some may wish to use it to eliminate
"undesirables" from society. Many believe
that the provision of genetic information contributes
to an increase in the number of abortions.
At the other end of life's spectrum is care of the
elderly. Our marvelous progress in medical knowledge
and technology has made it possible to preserve the
lives of newborns who would have died of natural causes
not too many years ago; to save the lives of children
and adults who would formerly have succumbed to contagious
diseases and traumatic injuries; to prolong the lives
of the elderly as they experience the debilitating
effects of chronic illness and old age. At the same
time, some openly advocate euthanasia, implying that
we have absolute dominion over life rather than stewardship.
This directly attacks the sacredness of each human
life.
Other new moral problems have been created by the
extension of lives in Intensive Care Units and Intensive
Neonatal Units as well as by surgical transplants
and implants, artificial insemination and some forms
of experimentation. Computers provide rapid, usually
accurate, testing and treatment, but they also create
problems of experimentation, confidentiality and dehumanization.
Intense debate is being waged about the extension
of lives solely through extraordinary—mechanical or
technological—means.
The consistent ethic of life, by taking into consideration
the impact of technology on the full spectrum of life
issues, provides additional insight to the new challenges
which "classical" medical ethics questions
face today. It enables us to define the problems in
terms of their impact on human life and to clarify
what it means to address them from a Catholic perspective.
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