...now had to deal with him verbally expressing the desire to let him die. The love she felt for her father was so strong that she wanted to grant him this final wish, but also wanted to ensure he would not suffer from this and be as comfortable as possible. Due to his health rapidly deteriorating and he was in more pain every day, she began to seek assistance from the many hospitals he sought care in to help end her father’s suffering. This will be a brief discussion of the issue of ethics regarding physician-assisted suicide, her final consensus to this matter being interpreted as a deontological view verses my own view being the utilitarian view. I would also like to state that I do agree with Susan Wolf’s attempts to locate hospital officials to try and let her father die as he wished, but I do not agree with her final decision that she is still against legalizing physician-assisted suicides. Susan M. Wolf did extensive research on the subject of physician-assisted suicides and her stance of being against the legalizing of it is very clear. While going through her own personal tragedy with her dying father, she was forced to rethink her position on this subject. This is indeed a traumatic event when there is a loved one asking to die because they are in so much pain. As stated in our text, ethics means, “…moral philosophy, investigates how we can evaluate our behavior in terms of right or wrong, good and bad – in short, how we determine what we should do, what we should...
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...Should Physician-Assisted suicide be legal? LisAnn Marcum PHI 103 Instructor: Bruce-Alan Barnard September 16, 2013 Should Physician-Assisted suicide be legal? This paper is an argumentative paper on whether it should or should not be legal for a Physician to aid in a patient’s suicide. Physician-assisted suicide transpires when a patient who has a terminal illness wishes to end their suffering and seeks help from their physician in aiding them to do so. This will be a challenging paper that will take a look at whether or not it is legal for a physician to help in assisting a patient’s suicide, if this practice is ethical, moral, and/or unconstitutional. A great deal of the general public feel as though this form of practice is alright because if the patient is suffering then something should be done to help them. On the other hand many feel it should be left up to God to decide when our time is up. In the end it is between the patient and their physician. Physician assisted suicide is a scandalous issue that has remained disputed for centuries. The arguments are still going on in the present day about if it should be ethically accepted. Many feel this kind of action ought to remain being left up to God, others see this argument as though if the patient is in pain and distress shouldn’t something be allowed to be done in order to help them. “Deductive arguments offer reasons to accept a conclusion, and those reasons should provide all information we need to determine...
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...A Survey of Physician-Assisted Suicide English Composition I Abstract I recently became aware of the Oregon Death and Dignity Act; I found this to be an interesting idea. It is not difficult to understand that the citizens may have varied and strong opinions about this subject, however the article I have chosen examines the physician opinion of medically assisted suicide, mainly the physicians without the legal option of medically-assisted suicide. A Survey of Physician-Assisted Suicide With an aging population it is not only important to understand the attitude of the public in regards to physician assisted suicide, but also the attitudes of those charged with carrying out the task of euthanasia or assisted suicide. First it is important to understand the term physician assited suicide refers to the medical professional providing the client with the means to commit suicide, meaning the physician provide medications or equipment to facilitate the end of the clients life. This differs from euthanasia in that the physician is not actually ending the client’s life through lethal injection or other direct means. The article I chose to examine is a study of physician attitude towards assisted suicide and a study and the prevalence of this request by their clients. The results are the compiled data of a survey sent to 3102 physicians, these physicians work in the fields most likely to receive a request for assisted suicide. Methods and Analysis The survey involved...
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...Physician Assisted Suicide Lawmakers in Connecticut are again taking up the issue of physician-assisted suicide. A physician-assisted suicide bill in Connecticut is up for its first legislative hearing before the General Assembly’s Public Health Committee. With this bill two physicians would have to certify, in writing, under oath, that their patient is terminally ill and is likely to die within the next six months. Additionally, the patient must be mentally competent to make an informed decision about his or her own death. A similar bill was proposed in 2009. Perhaps the strongest argument made on behalf of legalizing euthanasia or assisted suicide is that it, like abortion, is a "choice" issue. Supporters dispute that euthanasia/assisted suicide is the ultimate civil right, and to deprive mentally competent, terminally ill people who want to end their suffering is to disrespect their rights. Supporters also argue that legalizing euthanasia/assisted suicide ensures that no one dies in painful agony or suffering. Opposes contend that laws against euthanasia and assisted suicide are in place to prevent abuse and to protect people from unscrupulous doctors and others. Proponents also claim that opposition to euthanasia/assisted suicide is based primarily in religion and that laws prohibiting the practice are thus unconstitutional because they violate the division between church and state. We all die; however, in an age of amplified longevity and medical advances, death...
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...Physician Assisted Suicide “I still feel good enough, I still have enough joy. I still laugh and smile with my family and friends. This does not feel like the right time to go,” Brittney Maynard. In Oregon, there was a woman named Brittney Maynard. She was 29 years of age. She suddenly started to have severe headaches and became concerned and wanted to go see a doctor as soon as possible. Shortly after in May 2013, Maynard was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She was married to her husband Dan Diaz, at the time she was diagnosed. The following year, in the spring of 2014 she was informed that she only had six or seven months to live. The thought of dying from terminally ill brain cancer and never having kids was heartbreaking to her. She wanted to leave her legacy behind. Maynard decided to move from the state of California to Oregon to participate in physician assisted suicide also known as the “Death with Dignity Act.” She was told that the process would be long and painful, and she did not want to go through that. So she went a doctor in Oregon that could prescribe her the lethal dose of the medication that would end her life immediately. She scheduled to end her life November 1, 2014, just three short days after her husband’s birthday. Brittney stated, “I know everyone has to morn, but I want him to remarry and have a family. Something I could never do for him.” In her saying that one can tell that she really loves Dan and wants only the best for him. Physician...
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...it being considered murder. There is no jail time, life in prison, or death penalty. Believe it or not, this scenario existed in real life. This scenario describes Physician-Assisted Suicide. Physician-Assisted Suicide is currently legal in a few states. There is currently an on going debate to extend its legality to more states and eventually the entire United States. Many people each year are diagnosed with a terminal illness. They are forced to suffer and live in pain until they eventually die naturally. For some people, this could be years, even decades of suffering. This is a long time of suffering that could be avoided. Physician-Assisted Suicide helps these people. People can be put out of their pain and misery. This is highly controversial. Some believe these doctors are murderers. Others call these doctors a saving grace. This is a practice with many ethical questions. Hopefully, after research, I will be able to answer these ethical questions. There are a few other questions that I hope to answer. On being, the states allow Physician-Assisted Suicide. Also, what is New Jersey’s stand on this practice? Lastly, what are the guidelines and requirements to be eligible? As defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Physician Assisted Suicide is...
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...Physician-assisted suicide is; suicide by a patient facilitated by means or information (as a drug prescription or indications of the lethal dosage) provided by a physician who is aware of how the patient intends to use such means or information (Merriam-Webster, n.d). For over ten years, there has been much controversy about the ethics and legality of physician-assisted suicide (PAS) not only in the United States but also worldwide. In 1997, the Supreme Court had a unanimous ruling that there was not a constitutional right or a constitutional ban to PAS. Since then almost every other state have opposed legalization of PAS. There are many terminally ill people that feel assisted suicide should be their choice, not something left to the government for debate. Assisted suicide should be legal in all states because those who suffer with a terminal illness that want to die should be able to end their life peacefully instead of living in agony. Almost everyone that lives in the United States has rights; the right to free speech, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but those that are dying from a terminal disease do not have many rights. They do not have a right to seek help to end their pain and suffering. They lose the right to be in charge of their own life. The pursuit of happiness seems to not exist for those that wish to end their life. For some having their pain and suffering ended would make them “happy” because they no longer have to live with pain...
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...Although the physician does not directly end the patient’s life, physician-assisted suicide (PAS) occurs when the physician provides the means (i.e. information or drugs) to commit suicide. Patients who request PAS from their doctors usually suffer from terminal illnesses, such as AIDS, cancer, or neurological disorders, in which death is inevitable, and it is estimated that 12% of physicians receive at least one request for PAS per year (Beck, Wallace, Starks & Pearlman, 1996). While some people believe that the ability to end life in those cases is critical for preserving human dignity, PAS is still a controversial topic because others do not consider assisted suicide moral. The main argument against PAS is that it is contradictory to traditional religious beliefs and philosophical systems. For example, suicide has been considered a sin by the Catholic Church because the people believed God was responsible for creating life and was therefore the only one who had the right to take it (New York State Task Force on Life and the Law [NYSTF], 1994). Although that belief cannot be proven in science, some social groups still consider that God is the only one with the right to take life, and their personal beliefs must be respected. In Ancient Greece, suicide had also been regarded as an abandonment of duty, but current trends are starting to favor individual well-being over compliance to social norms and expectations. Some physicians also believe that using anesthetics should...
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...euthanasia, voluntary euthanasia, and non-voluntary euthanasia. The controversy is not life ending, but when death is inescapable, how far should one go in accelerating it? On October 27, 1997 Oregon enacted the Death with Dignity Act which allows terminally-ill Oregonians to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications, expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose (Oregon 2012). The Act requires the Oregon Department of Human Services to collect information about the patients and physicians who participate in the Act, and publish an annual statistical report. Many objections that arise on this topic is the act allowing patients to commit suicide? The Eighth Annual Report on Oregon's Death with Dignity Act states under the Act, ending one's life in accordance with the law does not constitute suicide (ProCon 2012). The Death with Dignity Act legalizes physician-assisted suicide (PAS), but specifically prohibits euthanasia, where a physician or other person directly administers a medication to end another's life. In 1997 Oregon became the first state to permit physician-assisted suicide. On November 5, 2008 the state of Washington voted to allow legal assisted suicide according to the Oregon model. There is no specific federal law regarding either euthanasia or assisted suicide. All 50 states and the District of Columbia prohibit euthanasia under general homicide laws. Assisted suicide laws are handled at the state rather than the federal level:...
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...Assisted Suicide Suffering from an illness that is terminal can last weeks, months and even years, or it can take one massive decision on taking yourself away from the pain with assisted suicide. Assisted suicide is when a patient that is terminally ill, and qualifies for the procedure, asks for medication to take their own life to stop the pain. In the United Sates, forty six states do not give the option for assisted suicide, which means there are millions of people suffering from incurable illnesses, waiting to die. Many people try killing themselves on their own, because they are not a citizen of a state that allows assisted suicide. I believe that killing yourself unassisted is worse than killing yourself with provided medication. Assisted suicide should be legal, because it allows suffering people to decide when they want to overcome the pain. Assisted suicide is not like any ordinary suicide. It is a suicide to relieve pain from a patient who only has so long to live. To receive assisted suicide, the patient has to qualify to all of the requirements. Out of the four states that have legalized assisted suicide, three of them involve the same requirements. Oregon was the first state to legalize assisted suicide on November 8, 1994. “An adult who is capable of making choices, is a resident of Oregon, and has been determined by the attending physician and consulting physician to be suffering from a terminal disease, and who had voluntarily expressed his or her life in...
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...Joyce Chen Aaron Lay ENC 1101 12 August 2013 Killing Them Softly Death is an ineluctable phenomenon, but it can be quick, possibly painless, or one can bear insufferable pain. It is stated in the Hippocratic Oath, “I will not give a lethal drug to anyone if I am asked, nor will I advise such a plan; and similarly I will not give a pessary to cause an abortion” (United States). A physician should uphold his or her duty to save a person’s life, even though that person may be in immense amount of pain and rather die. This is where the debate over legalizing euthanasia comes in. Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are very similar, however, dissimilar at the same time. In all technicality, physician-assisted suicide is the active form of euthanasia, and it gained popularity after the largely controversial case of Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Comprehending the basic knowledge of euthanasia and its history will help one to understand why euthanasia is not such an unacceptable practice, but also why legalizing euthanasia can benefit many people. Euthanasia is derived from “the Greek word for ‘good death’” (Terri). This “may imply that the Greeks and Romans who coined the term agreed on the basic issues [of euthanasia although,] history shows on us that this is not the case” (McDougall 3). Until Christianity came about, if the person is suffering from immense pain and/or the quality of life is futile, a physician’s duty to kill was equated to the duty to heal. Unfortunately, euthanasia...
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...Some would contest the belief that assisted suicide is should be allowed by saying it is morally wrong. In the Netherlands, assisted suicide is allowed. One law pertaining to assisted suicide says that children with disabilities are allowed to be killed at the request of parents (Smith). It is estimated that around 1,000 patients are killed a year that do not ask to die (Smith). In the case that the person has lost means of communication the decision will be made for him or her. Many are afraid that allowing more restricted laws elsewhere will eventually lead to these more extreme laws such as in the United States (US). Those who are pro-assisted suicide would agree the death of children and individuals who cannot communicate should not...
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...the right to die. There are three forms of assisted suicide. They are passive, active, and physician assisted suicide. The removals of life support, stopping medication, stopping food or water, and to stop resuscitation all passive types of assisted suicide. Active assisted suicide is a request from a dying individual to be put to death. It can also be a mercy killing. This is also called euthanasia. It is committed when someone other than the patient ends the patient’s life out of mercy (CBS News). Physician assisted suicide applies to a lethal dose of medication or other information supplied to a dying patient by a physician. All of these forms of assisted suicide have caused much debate and controversy throughout the world. In 1997, Oregon passed the Death with Dignity Act that gives terminally ill patients the right to obtain lethal doses of medication from a physician to aid in their suicide. This act prohibits a physician or any other patient from directly administering a medication to end another’s life (DWDA). Patients must adhere to many requirements before receiving this medication. The patient must be: -An adult (18 years of age or older) -A resident of Oregon -Capable (defined as able to make and communicate health care decisions) -Diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months -The patient must make two oral requests to his or her physician, separated by at least 15 days...
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...Similar to its violation of ancient teachings of the Bible, the assistance of a physician in medical suicide directly violates the ancient Hippocratic oath, and it is for this reason that many physicians refuse to support legalization of the practice. The Hippocratic oath is a promise, regarding the ethical standards of medicine, that all physicians swear to uphold. The classical oath asserts that “[the physician] will neither give a deadly drug to anybody who asked for it, nor will [the physician] make a suggestion to this effect]” (Ruggles). On these grounds the oath, developed in the late fifth century BC, directly prohibits the practice of physician-assisted suicide. It is for this reason that some physicians so vehemently oppose...
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...In their article “Assisted Suicide: An Overview” found online at EBSCOHost Connection Library, authors M. Lee and Alexander Stingl explain assisted suicide in the point of view of two parties, pro, and con. “Assisted Suicide is a controversial medical and ethical issue based on the question of whether, in certain situations, doctors should be allowed to help patients actively determine the time and circumstances of their death.” Stated in the article by Lee and Stingl, morality plays a key role in whether or not physicians have a right to assist patients in the final decision for their death. In the thesis above, the authors did not choose a bias on whether assisted suicide is right or wrong and leave it to the audience to decide, based...
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