Ethical issues of life-sustaining technology

Developments in medical technology have given physicians expanded means to sustain human life. In many instances, life sustaining treatments are administered despite the fact that the patient is unlikely to benefit from the medical intervention. Because of technology favoritism in society, life-sustaining technologies influence the availability, financing, and use of existing technologies. Healthcare organizations are attempting to guide treatment decisions by providing physicians and patients with thorough information about the efficacy of technologies. Programs such as hospice care, advance directives, technology assessment, and outcomes research, are reducing the occurrence of futile care. The paper considers how the development of high-tech, life-sustaining treatments present an ethical dilemma concerning equality of access to medical technologies, ethics of usage, cost and legal issues.<
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