Kontrowersje wokół medycznej definicji śmierci

Abstract

As the definition of death arouses considerable controversies, the author demonstrates a few terms of this notion. According to the classical definition, the moment of death is the result of the complete circulatory arrest. However, in the so-called New Definition, the death is the consequence of the circulatory arrest until the brain death. The new modified definition emphasizes the death of brain trunk until brain death as a whole. Organs and tissues will not be taken for transplantation until the brain death is confirmed and verified. If strict death criteria are not established everybody should be guaranteed the right palliative care. According to the Christian ethics it is acceptable to stop so-called persistent therapy in the case of the unjustified life-prolonging. The obligation to treat a patient does not include the agonal phase. The agony can not be categorized as a disease. The man has the right to a decent death, and prolonging agony in an artificial way can extend the suffering.