Do People Have the Right to Die? Essay

The Right to assisted suicide is a major topic worldwide. Different people have different feeling toward the matter in fact it boils down to say that the patients have the right to die with assistance of a doctor, this is said because of aspects such as a person’s values, morals and general ethics (Esther B. De La Torre).

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.

There are instances when people who are terminally ill or severely injured who want to terminate their own lives. Sometimes, due to the state of their injuries or conditions, those people are unable to end their own pain. It is in many of these cases that the patients request assistance in their suicides. This kind of request is like to happen in facilities where the patient receives long term or permanent care. Physician assisted suicide is a hotly contested issue. There is support for those who believe this kind of "assistance" is morally, ethically, and otherwise wrong. There is support from people who believe that a person has a right to choose when his/her life ends. These people believe that physician assisted suicide is a form of altruistic assistance. There are valid points made by people on both sides of this issue and there is certainly room within the debate to be undecided or to be conflicted. Secondary, tertiary, and long term providers/facilities have the power to improve the preservation of life and they have the power to assist with the end of life. The paper presents arguments of this debate and reflects upon the issues at the surface as well as the underlying issues of the debate over physician assisted suicide.

Physician assisted suicide is a topic that promotes debates from all sides. At the core of the physician assisted suicide debate is the idea that people should have the right to commit suicide if they choose to. There are those who feel human beings should have complete control over what happens to their bodies. Then there are those who feel we should strive to save life at all costs. When you add in the idea of a physician who has sworn to do no harm helping a person to end their life, the debate gets even more complicated. One opponent of Physician assisted suicide is Richard Doerflinger. Doerflinger in his article, Assisted Suicide: Pro-Choice or Anti-Life?, uses the Utilitarian theory of the greater good to explain how the slippery slope idea means physician assisted suicide will ultimately bring about more harm than good. On the other side of the debate Anthony Back, Robert Baker, et al. defend the rights of individuals to choose to end their life with the help of a physician based on a patient’s right to self-govern.

Physician assisted suicide- the voluntary termination of one’s own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician, and euthanasia, the painless killing of a patient suffering from an incurable, painful disease are both highly emotional and contentious subjects. Some argue physician assisted suicide (P.A.S.) is admissible for someone who is dying and trying to painlessly break free from the intolerable suffering at the end of their life, and some attempt to argue physician assisted suicide is not considered admissible because it violates the doctor’s Hippocratic oath and other reasons. From research, I believe, however, that there are some solutions that take sides with and against P.A.S. and euthanasia, but when they’re debated against each other there is a stronger argument for allowing the legalization and practices of P.A.S. rather than degrading the practice and prohibiting it.

Many people have been faced with having to deal with hard truths of both life and death. One of these decisions that can be fronted to a person with a terminal illness may be what to do next. With what can be considered looming doom, one has to ingest the decisions of self, family and the pain that lies ahead. The debate over physician assisted suicide has been a long time argument wielding both positive and negative views exactly how a person should proceed once a decision has been made. Three questions are often asked in the attempt to argue the case for physician assisted suicide, that of legality, ethicalness, and morality. In the long run, the debate between the cause, effect and personal ideology that is social

The right to doctor assisted suicide is a very controversial topic throughout the world. Some believe that it is morally incorrect, whereas others feel empathy for the suffering who wish to put an end to the pain. Without a doubt, patients should have the right to put an end to life when suffering or when death is imminent. With the help of doctor assisted suicide, healthcare implications are lessened, the burden on families is relieved and patients suffering can come to an end. These are some of the reasons why doctor assisted suicide needs be legalized in all parts of the world.

People who support physician-assisted suicide as a rightful death are unaware of the amount pain a patient is undergoing; therefore they assume it is wrong for them to refuse their decision on how they want to end their lives. Doctors fulfill their patients’ planned death because they believe it is a merciful, ethical, and beneficent act. Patients have the right to decide whether to prolong their death or end it anticipated (Ersek). It seems wrong to take away a patient’s one and only wish and others need to have the decency towards the patient to respect their decision. In a way, doctors and loved ones are dictating the way the patient should live their lives. If the decision was up to anyone, it would be in the rightful hands of the patient.

A second chart is presented that specifies the arguments in favor of and against physician assisted suicide. Arguments in favor of euthanasia include: the right to self-determination, the fact that it relieves suffering, the idea that assistance in dying is logical and reasonable, and the fact that physicians no longer have to accept patients’ request to limit interventions. Arguments against physician assisted suicide include: the fact that taking a human life is inherently wrong, the belief that respect for human life must be balanced by other views, the idea that it is different from other managements aimed at alleviating suffering, the fact that the domino effect is bound to happen, and the idea that it goes against the doctor-patient relationship and the role of the physician as a

There is much controversy in many medical choices that one can make. The controversy can be distinguished by religious boundaries, whether the choice or decision is moral or ethical, if the choice contradicts the Hippocratic Oath, or it could be any combination of the mentioned. One topic that holds all controversies mentioned is physician-assisted suicide. Physician-assisted suicide has many reasons why it should not be allowed. However, there are many more reasons that argue why physician-assisted suicide is beneficial and worth fighting to make it legal in every state, and eventually legal worldwide.

The concept of physician assisted suicide is a very divisive issue in modern times. The fact that modern medicine can prolong life has been seen throughout recent generations, but now that lives have been extended for so long some people would like to use modern medicines to put an end to their own lives prematurely. There are many strong opinions about this issue on either side of the argument, but it seems that those who oppose the practice are doing so without allowing themselves to see the full scope of the issue. What they are failing to acknowledge is both a patient’s right to choose the treatments that they feel are best for them and what should be an intrinsic human right to die with dignity. What the advocates for the legalization of physician assisted suicide need to consider as well, however, is the fact that in arguing for this practice to be accepted by society ought to be also defining the practice that they are fighting for. If both sides of the debate allow themselves to settle on an operational definition of physician assisted suicide that takes great care to ensure that this practice is never carried out frivolously or without care while allowing patients the freedom and dignity to truly decide when to let go.

The “Right to Die” (Euthanasia) should be further looked into as an option for terminally ill patients and not considered unethical. There has been an issue concerning the topic of “Human Euthanasia” as an acceptable action in society. The research compiled in conjunction with an educated opinion will be the basis for the argument for voluntary Euthanasia in this paper. Patients suffering from an incurable illness, exhausting all medical treatments, should be given the freedom of choice to continue their path of suffering or end it at their own will. “The Right to die” is not suicide, as you are fully aware that death will be certain, as Euthanasia spares the individual of additional pain.

Just as the Supreme Court granted the right to refuse medical treatment, people should be given the legal right to hasten their suffering with the help of the Death with Dignity Act. Opponents argue that given permission to assist in dying more vulnerable patients would be “susceptible to coercion.”

Do people have the right to die? Is there, in fact, a right to die? Assisted suicide is a controversial topic in the public eye today. Individuals choose their side of the controversy based on a number of variables ranging from their religious views and moral standings to political factors. Several aspects of this issue have been examined in books, TV shows, movies, magazine articles, and other means of bringing the subject to the attention of the public. However, perhaps the best way to look at this issue in the hopes of understanding the motives behind those involved is from the perspective of those concerned: the terminally ill and the disabled.

Euthanasia is a controversial issue. Many different opinions have been formed. From doctors and nurses to family members dealing with loved ones in the hospital, all of them have different ideas for the way they wish to die. However, there are many different issues affecting the legislation and beliefs of legalizing euthanasia. Taking the following aspects into mind, many may get a different understanding as to why legalization of euthanasia is necessary. Some of these include: misunderstanding of what euthanasia really is, doctors and nurses code of ethics, legal cases and laws, religious and personal beliefs, and economics in end-of-life care.