Terry Schiavo was a twenty-six-year-old woman who suffered a cardiac arrest on the morning of February 25, 1990. She was in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) experiencing lost of all cerebral cortex function, but has retained some good brain stem function (MacKinnon, 2013, p. 80). "A PVS patient is considered ˜highly unlikely' to live beyond a vegetative state, and after having gone through rigorous testing, may be diagnosed as such (Healthcare, 2014). Terry Schiavo's death would be considered an act of passive euthanasia, which "refers to withholding or withdrawing certain treatment and letting a patient die " (Mackinnon, 2013, p. 81).
Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action determined solely by its contribution to happiness or pleasure as summed among all people. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its outcome (Philosophy Basics, 2014). "Morality is about producing good consequences, not having good intentions. Thus, we should do whatever will bring the most benefit to all of humanity" (Uta, 2014). A utilitarian would hold that Terry Schiavo's mother's pain or desires were not any more important than Terry's happiness, which was not existent. .
Kant's moral theory is perhaps the most influential of all nonconsequential approaches. In his view, right actions have moral value only if they are done with a good will "for duty's sake alone (Darwin, 2014). Could it be simply that the euthanasia ends all pain and suffering; therefore, it meets Kant's criteria for action? Perhaps, however, Kant's categorical imperative adds two more requirements. First, the ethics of euthanasia must involve respect for the rights of all the stakeholders, such as, the patients, their families, the health workers and society as a whole. Finally, healthcare providers must find a way to incorporate a discussion of euthanasia into their code of ethics.
