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Euthanasia legal and ethical issues
Euthanasia legal position
The debate about euthanasia
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In order to provide a framework for my thesis statement on the morality of euthanasia, it is first necessary to define what euthanasia is and the different types of euthanasia. The term Euthanasia originates from the Greek term “eu”, meaning happy or good and “thanatos”, which means death, so the literal definition of the word Euthanasia can be translated to mean “good or happy death”. The different types of Euthanasia are active or passive euthanasia and voluntary or involuntary euthanasia. Passive Euthanasia generally refers to the ending of a persons life by removing the person from a life-sustaining machine, such as a respirator. This form of euthanasia is endorsed by the American Medical Association and is less controversial than active euthanasia. Active euthanasia refers to ending a persons life by a competent medical authority giving the person a lethal injection of a muscle relaxant or pain killer medication. The terms voluntary or involuntary refer to whether or not a patient requests euthanasia or whether the patient is not able to make such a request and euthanasia is carried out by a competent medical authority at the request of another family member, or by a competent medical authority’s decision. Involuntary euthanasia usually occurs when a patient is comatose. Because passive euthanasia is accepted by the American Medical Association in cases where it is clear the patient has no reasonable hope of living without the aid of a machine, passive euthanasia is not as controversial as active euthanasia. This paper will focus on the controversial morality issues regarding active voluntary or involuntary euthanasia, the ending of a persons life by lethal injection with or without the patients consent. Unless oth... ... middle of paper ... ... greater pain and anguish for longer periods of time than my father did, I believe euthanasia is the only compassionate form of relief we can provide. I believe it is morally important to allow an individual to die with respect for his or her dignity, while respecting his or her autonomy. Because of these reasons, euthanasia is morally justified when administered under strict controls. Works Cited Kamm, F.L. (1998) Physician-Assisted Suicide, Euthanasia, and Intending Death. Physician-Assisted Suicide: Expanding the Debate Kass, L. (1989, Winter). Neither for Love nor Money: Why Doctors Must Not Kill Quaghebeur, T., Dierckx de Casterlé, B.,& Gastmans, C. (2009). Nursing and Euthanasia: a review of argument-based ethics literature, Nursing Ethics, 2009 16 (4). Shafer-Landau, R., (2010), The Fundamentals of Ethics. Oxford University Press.
Euthanasia is a word derived from Greek that has the etymological meaning of an easy death through the alleviation of pain (Moreno, 1995). Through the course of history, the signification of the term has changed and evolved in many different definitions. A useful definition of euthanasia on which we will base this essay, is named ‘mercy killing’, which signifies deliberately putting an end to someone’s life to avoid further suffering, as stated by Michael Manning in 1998. The euthanasia debate possesses a strong significance in our modern society. A discussion conducted by both scholars and politicians is going on whether physicians have the right to hasten the death of an individual by the administration of poison. In this essay
Euthanasia - Pro and Con & nbsp; Abstract & nbsp; This paper will define Euthanasia and assisted suicide. Euthanasia is often confused with and associated with assisted suicide, definitions of the two are. required. Two perspectives shall be presented in this paper. The first perspective favor euthanasia or the "right to die," the second perspective. favor antieuthanasia, or the "right to live". Each perspective shall. endeavor to clarify the legal, moral and ethical ramifications or aspects of euthanasia. & nbsp; Thesis Statement & nbsp; Euthanasia, also mercy killing, is the practice of ending a life so as to.
The right of someone to take their own life has been a topic of debate since the time of Romans. In this paper euthanasia will be discussed including the history, current legislation, reasons for, reasons against, and the authors opinion on the topic. With an aging population, increasing lifespan, and an increasing rate of cancers euthanasia will become a larger topic of discussion in the years to come.
The controversy over euthanasia has recently become highly publicized. However, this issue is not a new debate. Society has voiced its opinions on the subject for hundreds of years. Euthanasia, which is Greek for "good death", refers to the act of ending another person’s life in order to end their suffering and pain.1 Two forms, passive and active euthanasia, categorize the actions taken to end the person’s life. Passive euthanasia involves removing a patient’s life support, withholding food and water, and discontinuing medical treatments. Active euthanasia includes any direct action taken to cause the death of the person, such as administrating a lethal drug.2 The debate over this issue stems from moral, ethical, and religious beliefs. All of these standpoints either side with the patient dying a natural death or from an accelerated death by euthanasia.
Euthanasia is a way that can help those who do not want to suffer or those who want it to be over quickly and with no pain. Does everyone have the right to die? “Many believe that killing someone is morally worse than letting someone die” (Rachels, 229). Many will say that God created us, and we should not take the easy way out, but rather was die slowly. Others believe that it is up to the person who is in pain whether they want to take an easy way out by an injection. In this paper I will discuss Passive Euthanasia and Active Euthanasia and James Rachels and Bonnie Steinbocks opinions on the subject. There will also be personal experiences as well as which between Passive and Active Euthanasia I believe has a stronger argument.
“Euthanasia is defined as a deliberate act undertaken by one person with the intention of ending life of another person to relieve that person's suffering and where the act is the cause of death.”(Gupta, Bhatnagar and Mishra) Some define it as mercy killing. Euthanasia may be voluntary, non voluntary and involuntary. When terminally ill patient consented to end his or her life, it is called voluntary euthanasia. Non voluntary euthanasia occurs when the suffering person never consented nor requested to end a life. These patients are incompetent to decide because they are either minor, in a comatose stage or have mental conditions. Involuntary euthanasia is conducted when it is against the will of the patient (Gupta, Bhatnagar, Mishra). Euthanasia can be either passive or active. Passive euthanasia means life-sustaining treatments are withheld and nothing is done to keep the patient alive. Active euthanasia occurs when a physician do something by giving drugs or substances that ends a patient’s life. (Medical News Today)
One of the reasons I picked Euthanasia is a subject that I am unfamiliar with. I want to learn both sides of the argument and how people from each side thought about it. So in this paper I will talk about both sides of the argument, the people on each side, and the different types of Euthanasia.
Death. This is not a topic that many people are comfortable discussing. It is such an uncomfortable topic to discuss because regardless if death is brought upon through natural death, murder, suicide, or even euthanasia, it brings upon such a wide variety of emotions to those affected that I believe no one can grow accustomed to. Stemming from this, we get into the debate of euthanasia vs. murder vs. suicide, and the ethics behind the three. Before considering the differences between the them, we should first be able to define ethics and morals. Nowadays, these two terms can be considered very similar, and are said to be the sort of principles that decide a person’s behavior and actions. Ethics and morals play a big role when discussing these topics, as people are quick to argue that euthanasia and murder can be considered the same. Through this paper, I will argue their differences, and how most aspects of euthanasia can be considered morally different and better than murder. Additionally, my perspective of how suicide compares and differs to these two will also be introduced.
...ered moral or immoral, one thing stands strong: the value of life over death. Life is hard, and even though euthanasia can be used as a mean to reduce suffering, it should never be used to take the easy way out of life. Another alternative to euthanasia is palliative care for patients that can relieve pain and provide comfort, along with an act of compassion. In all essence, we were born on this earth to live and not to exist.
Much like the word itself, Active euthanasia is the involvement of killing an individual by Active means, for instance, using lethal injections. This is also identified as mercy killing. According to the American Bar Association, “proponents of Active euthanasia often point to the fact that pain control through the administration of narcotics may in fact hasten a patient's death” (American Bar Association, 1992 p. 1). There are also different forms of Active euthanasia named voluntary Active euthanasia and involuntary Active euthanasia. Voluntary Active euthanasia is known as physician assisted suicide. In this case, patients chose their death due to their medical state. Involuntary Active euthanasia occurs when a medical patient does not give the consent of wanting to die. On the contrary, Passive euthanasia, is the act of withdrawing or withholding treatment that is given to an ill patient. For example, a patient is taken off of life support by having the “plug”...
Today, medical interventions have made it possible to save or prolong lives, but should the process of dying be left to nature? (Brogden, 2001). Phrases such as, “killing is always considered murder,” and “while life is present, so is hope” are not enough to contract with the present medical knowledge in the Canadian health care system, which is proficient of giving injured patients a chance to live, which in the past would not have been possible (Brogden, 2001). According to Brogden, a number of economic and ethical questions arise concerning the increasing elderly population. This is the reason why the Canadian society ought to endeavor to come to a decision on what is right and ethical when it comes to facing death. Uhlmann (1998) mentions that individuals’ attitudes towards euthanasia differ. From a utilitarianism point of view – holding that an action is judged as good or bad in relation to the consequence, outcome, or end result that is derived from it, and people choosing actions that will, in a given circumstance, increase the overall good (Lum, 2010) - euthanasia could become a means of health care cost containment, and also, with specific safeguards and in certain circumstances the taking of a human life is merciful and that all of us are entitled to end our lives when we see fit.
Euthanasia - the termination of a person's life with the aim of getting rid of his pain and suffering with an incurable disease (Euthanasia).Currently adult euthanasia legalized in different forms in countries such as Colombia and Japan, as well as the U.S. states of Oregon, Vermont and Washington, and in some European countries: namely, Netherland and Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland(Belgium has taken the unprecedented law on child euthanasia).At this time, the topic of euthanasia is very relevant, as pass many debates on this subject and its resolution. The purpose of the essay is the estimation of the positive and negative aspects of euthanasia. The study will begin with comparing benefits and drawbacks of euthanasia.
Dying with dignity, mercy death, right to die, and assisted suicide are just a few of the common terms, which describe a person’s death by euthanasia. Euthanasia has and always will be a very sensitive and controversial topic. There are two common questions surrounding this dilemma. The first is when is it considered mercy? Is it when a person is facing a terminal illness? The second is when is considered murder? Is it when a person looking for an easy way out of suffering and pain? This paper will examine the ethical dilemma of euthanasia according to the Christian worldview and compare it to other options of resolving the dilemma.
This essay will discuss the arguments both for and against euthanasia, with careful consideration given to all aspects related to the debate. Perhaps the most well known arguments in the euthanasia debate are that of the sanctity of life, of which holds palpable religious connotations which will be further discussed; the ending of suffering or 'low quality of life'; and the respect for patient autonomy (Huxtable & Campbell, 2003). In terms of extremities of the euthanasia debate spectrum, the Church of England (2000) have published a document greatly opposing euthanasia, whilst on the other hand, Otlowski (1997) has thoroughly researched and published an analysis of the law with the ultimate aim of ensuring euthanasia as a legal option.
Euthanasia is intended to end the persons life. There are different types of euthanasia,they all are however intended to kill. Passive euthanasia is the act of withdrawing a patient from their medication or with holding it. Assisted suicide although it may seem similar is not. Assisted suicide is the act of an ill patient allowing a physician control over the persons existence(Smith, 623). Euthanasia is only used if the person is a situation where they no longer see any possibility of improvement. Euthanasia is a decision some people take to end their life,since euthanasia is meant to end the persons life. Nargis Ebrahimi author of the article titled The Ethics of Euthanasia is a medical student in the University of Australia. Euthanasia is the persons ability to decision which measures they will take in regards to their existence. Euthanasia is also known as mercy killing because terminally patients are relieve from the enduring pain they face. Euthanasia has many branches active euthanasia ,for example, is the direct ingestion of a substance to end the persons life. Passive euthanasia is not considered euthanasia in many countries,because countries give the right to the patient to deny