Should physicians be able to assist patients who are terminally ill end their lives? Physician assisted suicide is a very controversial subject. In today’s society, people who commit suicide are known as “insane,” a person who takes prescription pills is known as a “drug addict” or “criminal.” However, when a doctor honors a patient’s request for a lethal dose of medicine, (which the patient will inject themselves) to end their life in peace is considered to be a murderer. However, when a physician unplugs a terminally ill patient who is on life support at the patient’s request is just doing their job. However, a person whose quality of life is nonexistent and are faced with a terminal illness should have the right to decide to seek physicians assistance. Physician-assisted suicide is defined as a voluntary termination of one’s own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2011). The provision of equipment, medication, or information to a patient by a physician for the purpose of assisting the patient in ending his or her own life (WebMD, 2009, p. 333). A terminal illness is an infection or disease which is considered ultimately fatal or incurable. Usually a patient is considered to have a terminal illness if he or she seems likely to die despite diagnosis and treatment, although it is possible for people with a terminal illness to live for years before succumbing to the medical condition. A patient is considered terminally ill, when a physician tells them that they have six months or less of survival left in life (Smith, 2011). Should terminally ill patients have the right to choose how they would like to die? There ar... ... middle of paper ... ...ceedingly high. Which makes you ask who is going to pay the bill for all the thousand of people who are being sustained in a persistent vegetative state (Newman, 1996). 3. People are already doing it. It’s reality! Works Cited Clarence, H. B. I., MD. (2010, October 25). Physician-aid in dying. . Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (2011). Physician-assisted suicide. (n.d.). Retrieved October 5, 2011, from www.merriam-webster.com. Naik, A. (2011, March 7). Mercy killings pros and cons. Newman, E. (1996). Making the final choice: Should physician-assisted suicide be legalized? San Diego, CA: Truth Seeker Co., Inc. Smith, L. (2011). Mercy killing. Smith, S. E. (2011, September 12). What is terminal illness. WebMD. (2009). . In Webster's new world (3rd edition). Retrieved October 5, 2011, from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ashford/Doc?id=10296815&ppg=3452009
Currently, in the United States, 12% of states including Vermont, Oregon, and California have legalized the Right to Die. This ongoing debate whether or not to assist in death with patients who have terminal illness has been and is still far from over. Before continuing, the definition of Right to Die is, “an individual who has been certified by a physician as having an illness or physical condition which can be reasonably be expected to result in death in 24 months or less after the date of the certification” (Terminally Ill Law & Legal Definition 1). With this definition, the Right to die ought to be available to any person that is determined terminally ill by a professional, upon this; with the request of Right to Die, euthanasia must be
Physician assisted suicide, is it ethically right or morally wrong? The global controversy becomes emotional as some argue that physician assisted suicide contradicts moral reasoning to preserve life. Others argue that it is acceptable for a dying person to choose to escape unbearable suffering and to alleviate their pain. In order to choose a side of the controversy one must understand the meaning of physician assisted suicide and what a terminally ill patient is. Physician assisted suicide occurs when a physician supervises a patient’s death by providing the necessary means for the patient to enable the death. Terminally ill as stated in CNN news is a person with a life threatening illness that has a prognosis of 6 months or less to live.
The ongoing controversy about Physician assisted suicides is an ongoing battle among physicians, patients and court systems. The question of whether or not individuals have the “right” to choose death over suffering in their final days or hours of life continues to be contested. On one side you have the physicians and the Hippocratic Oath they took to save lives; on the other you have the patients’ right to make life choices, even if that means to choose death to end suffering. The ultimate question “is it ethical for a physician to agree to assisted suicides and is it ethical for a patient to request assisted suicide?
In March of 1998, a woman suffering with cancer became the first person known to die under the law on physician-assisted suicide in the state of Oregon when she took a lethal dose of drugs. This law does not include people who have been on a life support system nor does it include those who have not voluntarily asked physicians to help them commit suicide. Many people worry that legalizing doctor assisted suicide is irrational and violates the life-saving tradition of medicine and it has been argued that the reason why some terminally ill patients yearn to commit suicide is nothing more than depression. Physician Assisted Suicide would lessen the human life or end the suffering and pain of those on the verge of dying; Physician Assisted Suicide needs to be figured out for those in dire need of it or for those fighting against it. The main purpose for this paper is to bring light on the advantages and disadvantages of physician-assisted suicide and to show what principled and moral reasoning there is behind each point.
Physician assisted suicide - the ending of a terminally ill patient’s life with the assistance of a physician who will normally supply a drug for the patient to take.
In conclusion, all should firmly believe that physician assisted suicide should not be legalized in any state. Although it is legalized in Oregon it is not wise for any other state to follow that example. By now, all should strongly believe the growing public support for PAS still remains a very dangerous trend. The role of our physician is that of a healer, not a killer. It must be understood that in some cases the only way to relieve someone from their pain is to let them go. On the contrary, each human life has an
Today there are five to ten thousand comatose patients in long term care facilities (Wheeler A1). There are countless elderly people in care facilities that have repeatedly expressed a desire to die. There are countless terminally ill patients that have also begged for death. Should these people be allowed to die, or should they be forced to keep on living? This question has plagued ethicists and physicians throughout the years.
Cotton, Paul. "Medicine's Position Is Both Pivotal And Precarious In Assisted Suicide Debate." The Journal of the American Association 1 Feb. 1995: 363-64.
February 18). Legalized Physician-Assisted Suicide in Oregon - The First Years' Experience. The New England Journal of Medicine, 340(7). Retrieved June 26, 2011, from http://www.nejm.org
There are problems with the title “Terminally ill patient” but there is a way to fix it. We must change the definition for “A Terminally ill patient” to: having an expected life span under 3 months, there is absolutely no way of helping the patient and are doomed to die. But a patient has to suffering from severe pain and be terminally ill to be able to get a physician to assist in their suicide.
The discussion of physician-assisted suicide is frequently focused around the ethical implications. The confusion commonly surfaces from the simple question, what is physician-assisted suicide? Physician-assisted suicide can be defined as a circumstance in which a medical physician provides a lethal dose of medication to a patient with a fatal illness. In this case, the patient has given consent, as well as direction, to the physician to ethically aid in their death (Introduction to Physician-Assisted Suicide: At Issue,
Physician assisted suicide, a suicide made possible by a physician providing a patient with the means to kill themselves, and euthanasia, the kindness of taking individual life by the physician, is an extremely debatable topic.
"Assisted Suicide: Finding Common Ground." Lois Snyder, JD; and Authur L. Caplan, PhD. Annals of Internal Medicine. March 21, 2000. v.132, n.6
Steinbrook, Robert. "Physician-assisted suicide in Oregon--an uncertain future." New England Journal of Medicine 6(2002):460. eLibrary. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.
Should a patient have the right to ask for a physician’s help to end his or her life? This question has raised great controversy for many years. The legalization of physician assisted suicide or active euthanasia is a complex issue and both sides have strong arguments. Supporters of active euthanasia often argue that active euthanasia is a good death, painless, quick, and ultimately is the patient’s choice. While it is understandable, though heart-rending, why a patient that is in severe pain and suffering that is incurable would choose euthanasia, it still does not outweigh the potential negative effects that the legalization of euthanasia may have. Active euthanasia should not be legalized because