The Ethics of Euthanasia

<Tab/> Bioethics is the study of moral issues in the fields of medical treatment and research. The idea of bioethics is based upon several different codes of ethics, some of these being the ancient Greek Hippocratic oath, which stated above all to "do no harm," and the professional code of ethics written in the 18th century by Thomas Percival, a British doctor. The code written by Percival was the basis for …

…up bioethics are rapidly changing to adapt to the breakthroughs in medical science that make death harder to define. Passive and active euthanasia are some of the problems that must be dealt with to ensure that medical practices follow the Hippocratic Oath to the best of their abilities. Euthanasia can be performed when the circumstances allow it. Just what those circumstances are and what they should be is up to the medical professionals of today.