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Published on 05/22/1995 All articles from this issue

Stanford professor poses challenges of biomedical ethics

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By Clyde Noel / Town Crier Staff Writer

Biomedical ethics can be a fascinating field to work in considering all the new ethical issues that emerge daily.

Just ask Ernle W. D. Young, co-director of the Stanford University Center for Biomedical Ethics. As a clinical professor of ethics, Young tries to keep ahead of the advances because with each new development it brings new ethical problems.

Speaking at the Morning Forum May 16, Young told the audience that the federal government is spending more than 14 percent of gross national product on health care without improving any quality of life or lengthening the age span.

"Why?" he asked. "There are other national priorities besides Healthcare. There is education, the infrastructure, affordable housing and homeless and it's time we developed a national priority. We have 40 million people who do not have access to health care and only if they are sick can they get in the front door of a hospital."

Young was born in South Africa and earned his Ph.D. in theological ethics at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. After graduating in 1971, he returned to South Africa. He became actively involved in working against the Apartheid system and left the country in 1973 after learning he was being placed under house arrest.

Arriving at Stanford he developed a program in biomedical ethics in the Stanford University School of Medicine and also a chaplaincy department. He chairs the ethics committee of the Stanford University Hospital and the VA Medical Center in Palo Alto.

The law, with its constant evolution and change, brings many bioethical questions to society. Young cited death as an example. "Death is not a right. It is a destiny, and the law should provide some control of the dignity."

Another ethical consideration is the graying of America. In 1860, 3 percent were over 65. By the year 2003, one out of every three persons will be over the age of 65. The question then becomes, "What are the limits of respect necessary for life and the continuation of life ?"

Young said America is a abused society. Alcohol and drugs produce damage to the children, he said, which brings up the question of individual rights versus the rights of society.

"In my mind, the most troubling issue that occurs in our society is therapy enhancement or cosmetic surgery," Young said. "We want flatter tummies, women want bigger breasts. If we develop therapy at this level my question is, why is it necessary to produce god-like creatures?"

Young continued, "The problems stem from the criminal justice system which is less concerned with truth and more concerned with winning. In the meantime, the science field is more concerned with truth. This brings on more ethical deliberations. "

Ethics concerning physician-assisted suicides or the right to die, started with a Dutch experiment in 1983, Young said. Here in America, Jack Kervorkian has now assisted 22 people in euthanasia.

"There is an ethical problem here," Young said, "because medicine is on the side of healing and not on the side of killing. The 14th amendment or equal rights amendment holds the line for the conscious patient. But it doesn't advocate anything for those who are in a coma."

Young advocates more exploration with pain management. Only when all the options don't work anymore, then the question of assisted suicide arises.

"There has to be a quality of relationship between physician and the patient, or otherwise I can see people getting in the business of assisted suicide and doing it for money," Young said. "I want the family or a significant other to agree with any decision. Plus a waiting period should be considered."

Young suggests a prospective review of the case rather than any legislation like several states introduced.

"There should be a review of the case ahead of time by a committee on the county level. The deciding factor should be the quality of relationship between the patient and the doctor and not any legislation," Young said.