Assisted Suicide Research Paper

In other words euthanasia is intentionally causing the death of a person to relieve them from suffering or pain and assisted suicide is helping the person kill him or herself. The main difference between euthanasia and assisted suicide is that in assisted suicide the patient is in complete control of the process that leads to death because he or she is the person who performs the act of suicide. The other person simply helps provide the means for carrying out the action. However, in euthanasia the patient is not causing his or her own death. I believe that the film, The Sea Inside, provides us with an example of assisted suicide. Ramon wanted it to be a case of euthanasia, but lost that battle when he took it to the courts. So he was left with no choice but to find the means to end his own life. With the help of his friends, he was able to get a hold of potassium cyanide and by drinking it he was able to take his own life.

“We don’t let animals suffer, so why humans?”(Stephen Hawking) Not only is assisted suicide not legal in most states, but people are judged for taking that option. So basically, they should just live in pain because you’re uncomfortable…? How is ending your dog's life because he’s in unbearable pain any different from helping a person end their pain?

Assisted suicide is an ethical topic that has sparked up many controversies. Individuals have heated disputes on whether or not patients who are suffering should have the right to die. Some worry that legalizing euthanasia is irrational and would violate some religions, while others argue that it provides a peaceful death towards terminally ill patients who are suffering from pain. Physician-assisted suicide is a contentious matter, in which there are many positive and negative aspects, whether or not it should be committed is a complex decision.

In the United States today, only several states legally recognize physician-assisted suicide as an option for families and terminally ill patients hoping to embrace a death with dignity. Although there is a growing movement to promote access to physician-assisted suicide, the topic is still widely regarded as taboo. As of 2016, the states of Washington, Oregon, Vermont, Colorado, New Jersey, and California are the only states to allow full and legal access to physician-assisted suicide. Alongside those states are Montana and New Mexico, which legally offer “aid in dying,” meaning the state allows for physicians to assist in alleviating the longevity of the dying process.

To fully understand the issue at hand, one must understand the various forms of euthanasia. The Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary: Tenth Edition defines euthanasia as “the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals…in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy.” Euthanasia can be either passive or active. Passive euthanasia occurs when a patient is relieved of medical treatment and is allowed to die naturally. Active euthanasia occurs when either a physician or a family member actively takes the life of the patient, perhaps through lethal injection, and eliminates a natural death process. Many people commonly use the word “euthanasia” to refer to assisted suicide. Essentially, assisted suicide is a form of active euthanasia in that a person, usually a physician, aids in the suicide of a patient.

Physician assisted suicide is murder. Using euthanasia, increased dosage of morphine or injecting patient’s with a lethal combination of drugs to slow his/her breathing until he/she dies is also murder. Physician assisted suicide is morally wrong. The classical theory for physician assisted suicide is utilitarianism because according to Mosser 2010, “utilitarianism is an ethical theory that determines the moral value of an act in terms of its results and if those results produce the greatest good for the greatest number.” Utilitarianism will solve the physician assisted suicide problem if all of the physicians will stand by the oath they say. According to the Hippocratic

Should physician-assisted suicide be legal? Physician-assisted suicide should be legalized. People should finally have the choice if they wanted to. It could relieve suffering and help whoever wants to die peacefully. It could help a lot of people in the world. 79% of people say that physician-assisted suicide be legal. However it should not be legalized.

Do you think physician-assisted suicide is necessary? In most states physician-assisted suicide is legal but other states want it to be illegal. In the 5 states that is legal, want their patients to have the right to die the way they choose. But in the other states don’t like physician assisted suicide because is cheaper and it harm the patines even more. While some people believe it’s a harm and a sin, physician-assisted suicide should be legalized because it’s economic, patines rights and it’s a calm way to die.

The federal legalization of physician-assisted suicide is a conflict of ethics. This is one reason the problem has yet to be resolved. There are multiple sides to this argument. Some people want the government to mandate the legalization of physician-assisted suicide while others believe the practice to be morally unacceptable. Then there are those who do not have enough knowledge on the issue to have an opinion at all. This issue that needs to be brought to Americans’ attention sooner rather than later, because more Americans are being given the opportunity to vote on the topic.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, assisted suicide is “...suicide effected with the assistance of another person, especially the taking of lethal drugs provided by a doctor for the purpose by a patient suffering from a terminal illness or incurable condition.” Assisted suicide for the terminally ill should be legalized in all fifty states, considering it gives the person control over their life, ends their family’s suffering and assures that the patient will have access over their unalienable rights.

Before beginning, it is necessary that we clarify the difference between euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. Most use these terms inter-changeably when debating, although closely related, they are very different. Physician assisted suicide is when a medical professional prescribes a lethal dose of medication to a patient, usually one with a terminal illness, and then the patient has the ability to go home and proceed with taking the medication to

The difference between the two methods is the initiation or act of death; euthanasia, the doctor initiates death, whereas in physician-assisted suicide, the patient willingly takes the medication, therefore, committing suicide with the help of the doctor’s prescription (Marker 1). Because euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are relatively similar in purpose and function, they will be used in correlation to each other when discussing the use and concerns.

However, doctors take an oath to save lives. Taking a life isn’t saving it. The Hippocratic Oath is an oath written by Hippocrates to be taken by physicians and doctors in order to stay true to their true purpose. Though the exact oath is not usually used by doctors today, most, if not all, of the oaths that are used are modeled after this one. One section of the oath states:. “To please no one will I prescribe a deadly drug nor give advice which may cause his death. (Richardson)” . To go against it is to go against your own moral and professional code, thus breaking the trust patients and coworkers alike may have with you. In certain situations involving large amounts of pain assisted suicide may sound like the only answer to saving a life. However, people in pain are not thinking straight, whether it be physical or mental pain, because the only thing on their mind is getting rid of said pain. Doctors should be able to understand this d should provide the best help they know of in order to save the patient with t taking their

Religion plays an important role in the issue of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. Most of the major world religions are against suicide in all forms, even in the cases of pain and suffering. The Bible says, "Thou shall not kill." This was meant for everyone, not just for specific people. Doctors have the power to save people who are sick and at the end of their lives. They work hard to help people, not kill people. If physicians tell a family there is absolutely no chance for a patient to survive, the family will most likely believe them.

Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are actions that hit at the core of what it means to be human - the moral and ethical actions that make us who we are, or who we ought to be. Euthanasia, a subject that is so well known in the twenty-first century, is subject to many discussions about ethical permissibility which date back to as far as ancient Greece and Rome , where euthanasia was practiced rather frequently. It was not until the Hippocratic School removed it from medical practice. Euthanasia in itself raises many ethical dilemmas – such as, is it ethical for a doctor to assist a terminally ill patient in ending his life? Under what circumstances, if any, is euthanasia considered ethically appropriate? More so, euthanasia raises