ABSTRACT
In deliberating a decision, rational calculation may not resolve uncertainty. Instead, one may need to “feel through” what is to come. Thinking and feeling through a possible decision means anticipating the decision in its eventuality, such that it becomes possibly constituted yet also transformative of the people expectations. The decisions that parents make can be considered as felt through ‘parenting decisions’ that shape the childhood they afford their children. For moral problems in need of deliberation and information, the healthcare professional needs to attend to supporting the parent and child. Healthcare professionals have a responsibility to not merely accept any decision a family wants without considering the impact it will have on a child. Professional practitioners, too, are a part of the broader societal community charged with advocating for children to ensure that decisions fall within the range of societally ‘acceptable,’ ‘good enough,’ or ‘reasonable’ actions, or quite simply decisions avoiding harm.
