I.
What is Euthanasia?
Euthanasia is the practice of ending the life of a patient to limit the patient's
suffering. The patient in question would typically be terminally ill or
experiencing great pain and suffering. The word “euthanasia” itself comes
from the Greek words “eu” (good) and “thanatos” (death).
II.
Euthanasia as Mercy killing
Act or practice of putting to death persons suffering from a painful and
incurable disease or incapacitating physical disorder in a painless manner, or
allowing them to die by withholding treatment or withdrawing artificial lifesupport measures because most legal systems make no specific provision for
it, it is usually regarded as either suicide (if performed by the patient himself)
or murder (if performed by another). Physicians, on the other hand, may
legally decide not to prolong life in cases of extreme suffering, and they may
administer drugs to relieve pain even if doing so shortens the patient's life.
Several European countries had special provisions in their criminal codes in
the late twentieth century for lenient sentencing and the consideration of
extenuating circumstances in euthanasia prosecutions.
III.
Euthanasia as Physician-Assisted Suicide
Assisted suicide is the act of deliberately assisting another person to kill
themselves.
The Law
* Illegal under the terms of Suicide Act (1961)
* Punishable by up to 14 years of imprisonment
* Opposed in Britain by the British Medical Association, the Association for
Palliative Medicine, the British Geriatrics Society, and Royal Medical College
Eligibility
According to the survey conducted by British Medical Association (2020), they
assumed the criteria would fall within the following boundaries, to cover
patients who:
* are adults
* have the mental capacity to make the decision
* have made a voluntary request and
* have either a terminal illness or serious physical illness causing intolerable
suffering that cannot be relieved
IV.
Forms of Euthanasia
*Active - Active euthanasia occurs when medical professionals, or another
person, deliberately do something that causes the patient to die. “Act of
Commission” (someone is committing an act of painlessly putting the patient
to death)
-example when a person is killed by being given an overdose of painkillers.
*Passive - Passive euthanasia is when death is brought about by an omission
or discontinuation of treatment, medical professionals stop doing the
treatments that are keeping the patient alive. This can be by withdrawing or
withholding treatment:(the medical community is not liable for the death of the
patient because they are simply honoring the will of the patient) “Act of
Omission”
The withholding and withdrawal of life support are processes by which various
medical interventions either are not given to or are taken away from patients,
with the expectation that they will die as a result.
Withdrawing or Withholding treatment: for example, switching off a machine
that is keeping a person alive so that they die of their disease.
not carrying out surgery that will extend life for a short time.
-switch off life-support machines
-disconnect a feeding tube
-don't carry out a life-extending operation
-don't give life-extending drugs
*Voluntary
*Involuntary
V.
Pro-Choice: The right to die
Dying with Dignity
Right to Die with Dignity
"Every person shall have the right to die with dignity; this right shall include
the right to choose the time of one's death and to receive medical and
pharmaceutical assistance to die painlessly.
Motivating Factors: (Physician-Assisted Dying: The Case for Palliative Care
and Patient Choice)
Illness-related experiences
● Feeling weak, tired, and uncomfortable
● Loss of function
● Pain or unacceptable side effects of pain medication
Threats to sense of self
● Loss of sense of self
● Desire for control
● Long-standing beliefs in favor of hastened death
Fears about the future
● Fears about future quality of life and dying
● Negative past experiences with dying
● Fear of being a burden on others
Who ought to be eligible to ask for and receive assistance in dying?
The following conditions are:
● the person is of “sound mind”
● the decision is reached voluntarily without coercion
● no reasonable means are available, that are acceptable to the person, that
would render their lives worth living again in their own best judgment
● Based on everything we know, the condition that motivated their request is
irreversible.
VI.
ProLife: On the Part of Patient and Physician
*A sidenote on euthanasia:
A manuscript was published in 1920 by Karl Binding and Alfred Hoche called
“Permitting the Destruction of Unworthy Life,” paving the way to a euthanasia
program. This program, instituted by the medical community, garnered the
support of the Nazi government, which eventually led to one of history's
greatest crimes: the Holocaust.
*On the part of the patient:
-Declining mental health
-Child euthanasia
-People who are just tired of life
*On the part of the physician:
In an article in the New England Journal of Medicine (12 July 2012),
Prokopetz and Lehmann (2012) admitted that the majority of physicians and
professional physician organizations are not “comfortable with the idea of
physicians playing an active role in ending patient's lives.” For this reason,
they propose a system that removes the physician from direct involvement in
the process. “We envision the development of a central state or federal
mechanism to confirm the authenticity and eligibility of patients’ requests,
dispense medication, and monitor demand and use. Such a mechanism
would obviate physician involvement beyond usual care.” The authors
conclude that with the practice controlled and monitored by the state or
federal government there would be transparency and uniformity in the
process and the physician would not have to be directly involved in causing
the death of the patient.
The ends of medicine are health, cure, and care. The killing of the patient is
not a goal of the physician patient encounter. There is no role for the
physician in euthanasia and assisted suicide. The physician must care for the
ailing patient with love and compassion, treating physical and emotional pain
always with respect, preserving the person's dignity, and never cause any
harm. The taking of innocent life is never a moral act.
Sources:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/euthanasia/overview/activepassive_1.shtml
https://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/euthanasia/overview/forms.shtml
https://medicine.missouri.edu/centers-institutes-labs/healthethics/faq/euthanasia#:~:text=What%20is%20euthanasia%3F,%E2%80%9Ct
hanatos%E2%80%9D%20(death).
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9017676/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6026994/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VPZzPaSpy4