Taking the Guess Out of the Gender Game: Ethical Issues in Pre-Conception Sex Selection

Abstract

“It’s a boy” or “It’s a girl”! These two simple sentences are by far the most exciting news a mother and father hear in their careers as parents. It’s a flip of a coin, 50 – 50, boy or girl. What if, that ratio could be predicted or even ensured to go in your favor? With technology advancing as fast paced as it is in the world, this chance game of gender may be completely negated. As this is an advance in medical-based technology, nurses may be involved in the genetic aspects and help facilitate the decision-making process of a family choosing whether or not to use this technology. Therefore, nurses need to become more educated in this area of research and begin to understand the variety of ramification of this advance. According to the World Health Organization (2011), this technology could be seen as a preconception form of sexism and could result in the ultimate imbalance of gender in the world. Inevitably, a line must be drawn. The purpose of this paper is to explore these pros and cons of the ethical dilemma created by this new technology as well as its importance in the nursing profession. To begin to discuss the implications, one must understand the process itself and the consequences it creates.