In
“Proof”, written by Renford Bambrough, a scenario is proposed in
support of the existence of moral knowledge. Bambrough poses that
there is a child in need of surgery that would be painful for him in
the absence of anesthesia, and as Bambrough sees it, there is not
doubt that this child should receive it (as cited in Shafer-Landau,
2012, p.218). As someone with beliefs more aligned with moral
skepticism, I wondered whether or not this really was objective proof
of moral truths. As risky as it may be, I thought that I would at
least enter the conversation on this matter.
Just
today I found an article about the health risks to recovery room
hospital staff associated with exposure to waste anesthetic gas
exhaled by recovering patients (Cook, 2013). “Beware the Hidden
Dangers of Anesthesia” starts off by stating that anesthesia in the
operating room isn't the only area where these gases can cause harm,
and that even nurses in the recovery room may be at risk of exposure
to these gases which have potentially harmful health effects (Cook,
2013). These effects include mild problems such as nausea and
headaches, but also more serious complications like sterility,
miscarriages, cancer, and liver disease (Cook, 2013). The National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health claims that this problem
is even more pronounced in facilities that lack proper ventilation,
and the organization also suggests that systems be developed that
monitor the concentration level of anesthetic gases in breathing
zones (Cook, 2013).
