My Sisters Keeper

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Southern Illinois University, Carbondale *

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395

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Philosophy

Date

Oct 30, 2023

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docx

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Uploaded by CaptainMoose1207

1. How might an ethics committee approach the Fitzgeralds’ situation? If you were on the ethics committee tasked with meeting with them, what are three things you’d discuss? I remember watching this movie many times growing up and each time I watch it, I always believe that this is a unique approach for a movie. The Fitzgerald family situation is unique because they had Anna to help Kate survive. Kate has leukemia and continuously needs procedures, blood, and eventually the discussion of a kidney. An ethics committee would approach Anna first. This would give insight into her feelings and why she feels the way she does. From there, they would need to address the parents and their views regarding the situation. After that, they would need to discuss with Kate to see her beliefs. If I was personally on an ethics committee, I would talk with the parents first. Ask them why they thought this was a good idea, get insight into their standpoints, and ask if they considered the long-term effects for both Anna and Kate. Before Anna could even make decisions, she had procedures done to her that might affect her once she got older. The second thing I would discuss is why the parents did not ask both Anna and Kate if they were okay with this situation. Anna, as it shows in the movie, wants her rights and Kate wants to finally be done battling cancer. They should have addressed both of their wants before making any decisions. The last thing I would discuss would be asking what Kate truly wanted. Knowing exactly what Kate wanted could have prevented many issues. 2. Using the ethical principles of justice, beneficence, or nonmaleficence select two of the principles and explain how they apply to the movie. Beneficence is the act of doing kindness and providing a benefit. This is one of my favorite parts of this movie and shows so much respect toward Kate. Kate gets frustrated about how she looks because she doesn’t have hair, is continuously ill, and considers herself ugly because of her differences from people around her. Sara, her mother, shaves her head bald. She shows Kate that it does not matter how someone looks outside, but rather what is inside. This truly shows kindness and support toward Kate. Distributive justice is the balancing and appropriate sharing of benefits and burdens. This is the sharing of Anna, who was genetically created to help Kate. What is the ultimate balance and appropriate number of procedures Anna should do to help her sister? This all comes down to everyone’s opinions and discussions. 3. Discuss how autonomy was a major factor/reoccurring issue in this movie. Select at least two different situations where autonomy (or lack thereof) was applied. Autonomy is the state of self-governance where the person can act independently and make decisions about actions, treatment, and health practices. One example is Anna, but this is throughout the whole movie. She knows that she was created to help Kate live since she was a perfect match. Anna had many hospitalizations and procedures done throughout her life for Kate to have lived as long as she did. Kate desperately needs a new kidney and Anna does not want to. The doctors said that Anna would have to be careful for the rest of her life and Anna does not want to because of the risks that would

be involved for the remainder of her life. Anna finally wants to make decisions on her own because it is her health too, not just Kate’s. Another example would be Kate. She finally told her parents that she was okay living her life with the little amount of time that she had left. She was tired of living and fighting cancer, plus she did not enjoy seeing Anna go through procedures to help her live. Kate was tired of battling cancer and just wanted to enjoy the life she had left with the people she cared about the most.

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