Topic : Case Study
7. You are a doctor in a government hospital. One of your lady friends got married in very rich and influential family. However, with passage of time you came to know that the family is very conservative as she visited you to seek your help in determining sex of the child at fetus stage. As her in-laws want a boy child to act as inheritor of the family. They have also ordered to abort the child if it is girl. Later her in-laws insisted hard and connected the doctor with the health minister on mobile phone. The minister said the doctor to help them in all possible manners without saying anything about the issue at hand. Thus reporting about the issue to police is waste.
Answer the following questions:
(a) What are the ethical dilemmas in the above case?
(b) Do you think that your moral obligation also demands to help your friend? (250 words)
Why the question:
Case study based.
Key Demand of the question:
The question is based on the ethical issue concerning the determination of sex of the fetus.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Discuss about the context of the question first.
Body:
Sex ratio, an important social indicator measuring extent of prevailing equity between males and females in a society, is defined as number of females per 1000 males. Changes in sex ratio reflect underlying socio-economic and cultural patterns of a society. The family is well educated and affluent and then also they are moving for this test in lieu for male child. Also in the above case doctor is being persuaded or ordered to go for sex selective test by the Health Minister.
The ethical dilemma will be whether to follow the medical and moral duty of saving a fetus or saving the friend in need from the pressure of her in-laws by accepting their demands or follow the orders of the seniors.
Discuss the case involved – ethical dilemma and how as an ethical doctor you would do your duty.
Conclusion:
Conclude by justifying your stand.