Fetal Abnormality Case Study - Click to Get Solution

Question: How does the theory determine or influence each of their recommendation for action? Answer: Jessica, a 30-year old immigrant from Mexico, works at local restaurant and her husband Marco works at a construction site. They worked hard for three years and finally managed to own an apartment. She got pregnant prior to their shifting into their new residence. Due to poor financial condition, they could not avail medical assistance initially. After four months, they visited the country hospital. They consulted Dr. Wilson, a general physician of the hospital. The ultrasound detected abnormality in the fetus. The diagnosis indicated that the arms were not developed. More over there are also 25% chances that the fetus might develop Down syndrome. The rare medical condition detected in the fetus is called Phocomelia, which is a congenital disorder of malfunctioned limbs. It mainly occurs due to an immunomodulatory drug, Thalidomide (Yegiyants Panthaki, 2012). The disorder Phocomelia might be inherited genetically. Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused due to an extra copy of Chromosome 21 (Epstein, 2013). Hence, the doctor advised for an abortion to prevent the ill consequences that might occur if the medical termination was not done at proper time (Sumner, 2014). However, Jessica, Marco, Maria, and Dr. Wilson were reluctant to take such a decision. His thoughts are based on the theory of moral status and cognitive inabilities that states that aborting an unborn child with abnormalities are not morally or ethically incorrect. They were concerned with the moral values of the fetus. They considered the theories of moral values. They followed the theories of moral status: all life is sacred and what God intends happens in life (Kuhse Singer, 2013). Maria advised Jessica to think of her responsibility and values as a mother. According to Quantum theory, fetus has soul. The theory of moral status has a great impact on Jessica, Marco and Maria. They were not willing to take a step like abortion and value the theories more. They were not ready to accept the hurdles that the unborn might face with abnormalities. Moreover, Marco was finding difficulty to anticipate the socio-economic barriers that they might encounter in future. According to the moral values, a child cannot be killed because he is disabled or unwanted. They could not agree with Dr. Wilson regarding the medical termination of their child, as they could not think of killing a human life because of the malformation detected in the fetus and considered them responsible for saving their child. I believe in the moral theories of fetus. The theory, which is completely agreeable, is that life is sacred and everyone has equal right to live (Brandt Rozin, 2013). An unborn child is innocent and unable to express views and opinions. Nonetheless, in this particular case, the fetus is found with some birth defects that might be difficult to be handled for a long time, especially for a family facing monetary issues. Early detection of abnormality is useful in this given situation. It is recommended from the perspective of a nurse that the best solution to the unwanted incident is medical termination of the child. Abortion is an appropriate medical and scientific method for termination of pregnancy (Hodgson, 2014). It is suggested in view of a responsible medical professional as a radical alternative, which is medically preferable. References: Brandt, A. M., Rozin, P. (2013).Morality and health. Routledge. Epstein, C. J. (2013). of Down Syndrome.Molecular Genetic Medicine,2, 105. Hodgson, J. E. (Ed.). (2014).Abortion and sterilization: medical and social aspects. Academic Press. Kuhse, H., Singer, P. (Eds.). (2013).A companion to bioethics. John Wiley Sons. Sumner, L. W. (2014).Abortion and moral theory. Princeton University Press. Yegiyants, S., Panthaki, Z. J. (2012). Congenital Hand Anomalies. InPlastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery: The Essentials.World Scientific.