Ethical Dilemma

Ethical Dilemma

The increased burden of extended intensive care treatment for a newborn infant who rests on the borderline viability poses a wide range of ethical as well as clinical challenges (Costeloe et al., 2000). Moreover, this problem is further accentuated by the relatively increased disability rate among surviving infants. Many bioethicists are of the staunch belief that decisions related to clinical practices should be in accordance with the best interests of the infant. Hence, they recommend practitioners to maintain a balance of likely outcomes against the burdens of intensive care treatment, which includes pain and suffering.

However, there are a lot of uncertainties so that argument in favor of 'best interests' proves to be of more help in defining the problems than it does in providing clinical solutions. The interests of both the parents are invariably linked to the infant and carry significant weight (Field et al., 2002). Even when parents launch into angry tirades or lodge complaints regarding the delivery room, the likelihood that they are based on conflicts in ethical opinions is remarkably rare.

In a majority of cases, such complaints are the result of a misunderstanding, tension or confusion between the parents and the hospital staff. Moreover, counseling services or information provided to parents before delivery is also grossly misunderstood in a majority of cases. For instance, the state of the infant at the time of birth and the response to mask and bag ventilation plays an integral role in determining whether the intensive care is to be stopped or continued.

In the following stages, the care that is provided to the infant in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) is considered to be a 'trial of life'. Here, the option is available to withdraw ventilator aid as per the extent and nature of neonatal complexity. Given the ambiguity related with the possible outcomes in cases of individual infants, there remains a big question mark on whether an ethical framework is present which may aid in decision-making regarding resuscitation at the time of birth while also ensuring that the provision of treatment in intensive care unit is made easier (Hansen, 2003).

A core concept forwarded by leading bioethicists is that one should act while keeping in mind the best interests of the infant in concern. This concept has become increasingly popular and widely-practiced over the years and has gained significant authority as well. It also acts as an important aid in the understanding of the various moral and ethical dimensions that are related to the act of providing intensive care and support to infant who are on borderline viability and offering them resuscitation treatment when they are in the delivery room (Higgins, 2005).

This narrows down the focus of researchers to the fact that infants may have a wide range of interests in these issues, especially those related to the suffering and pain associated with their treatment and care. There have also been countless debates on whether a newborn infant has an interest in living or prolonging their lives through the miracles ...