Savior siblings, parenting and the moral valorization of children. Bioethics 2014 May;28(4):187-93
Date
08/01/2012Pubmed ID
22846045DOI
10.1111/j.1467-8519.2012.02001.xScopus ID
2-s2.0-84898666711 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 9 CitationsAbstract
Philosophy has long been concerned with 'moral status'. Discussions about the moral status of children, however, seem often to promote confusion rather than clarity. Using the creation of 'savior siblings' as an example, this paper provides a philosophical critique of the moral status of children and the moral relevance of parenting and the role that formative experience, regret and relational autonomy play in parental decisions. We suggest that parents make moral decisions that are guided by the moral significance they attach to children, to sick children and most importantly, to a specific sick child (theirs). This moral valorization is rarely made explicit and has generally been ignored by both philosophers and clinicians in previous critiques. Recognizing this, however, may transform not only the focus of bioethical discourse but also the policies and practices surrounding the care of children requiring bone marrow or cord blood transplantation by better understanding the values at stake behind parental decision making.
Author List
Strong K, Kerridge I, Little MMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
Bone Marrow TransplantationChild
Decision Making
Genetic Diseases, Inborn
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization
Histocompatibility Testing
Humans
Moral Obligations
Morals
Neoplasms
Parenting
Siblings
Value of Life
