Ira Byock's Doctor-Assisted Suicide Is Unethical And Dangerous

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.

The United States is a nation founded on freedoms and liberties, giving each citizen the ability to make their own life decisions. This freedom includes all aspects of one’s life, including medical care. With freedom comes responsibility, and this is true in terms of physician-assisted suicide. The ongoing struggle between those in favor and those opposed to this subject has ravaged the medical field, bringing into question what is morally and ethically right. The fact of the matter is that physician-assisted suicide is neither morally nor ethically acceptable under any circumstance. Not only is it a direct violation of a doctor’s Hippocratic Oath, but it is not constitutionally binding. Physician-assisted suicide would also lead to

Do no harm. This used to be the heart of all medicine. But now our public is introducing just the contrary of this. When physician-assisted suicide becomes legal throughout the United States, no longer will we be stumbling on the fact that someday, somewhere, and somehow we will die unexpectedly or possibly expectedly, with everything the doctors could do to save us; but now we can die on our own guidance. Physician-assisted suicide is a debated subject that often divides the public between those who support it versus those who oppose it. There are some individuals who believe that patients suffering from chronic and fatal illnesses should be allowed to die on their own terms and in peace. And there are some individuals who oppose

Most people have seen at least one person in their life suffering in unbearable pain up to their death, and it’s never something people find joy in. There is nothing pleasing about being in pain or watching someone be in pain. For those people whose pain does not respond to methods of modern medicine, there should be the option of physician-assisted suicide. “Physician-assisted suicide refers to the practice of a physician prescribing or regulating, upon a patient’s informed request, a lethal dose of medication for the purpose of ending that patient’s life” (Lerner). The lethal drugs that are given to the patient by the doctor are administered by the patient themself, not by the doctor, so

The idea and ethicality of Physician-Assisted Suicide is a rather dark and controversial subject due to the fact that someone is in need of killing themselves. Most people believe suicide to be unethical, they believe there will always be another way out, sadly suicide is an inevitable thing to occur, there will always be some person who feels the need to do it; Mary Williams states, “how is the option of a razor to the wrist or a gun in the mouth more morally palatable than a physician-administered drug”(Source A). Williams’ observation about suicide is sensible because people committing suicide are doing it with drug overdoses, guns, and razors this will never stop, so why not allow those people to choose a more dignified and humane way

Those in support of Physician Assisted Suicide could as well point out that death is a critical state of human life and certain conditions are indicators of its timing. It would be useless to spend heavily on medication when everyone is aware that the patient has no life to live. Forcing one to lead a traumatizing life by keeping him or her on oxygen is immoral because it is disturbing to the entire society more than it is to the patient. It puts the society in a state of tension which prevents them from focusing on issues which would benefit their destinies. “Advocates of voluntary euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide find it difficult enough to persuade legislators or the public to change the law to allow doctors to help people who are

Physician-assisted suicide is the voluntary termination of one's own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician. While some are against the idea of physician-assisted, many believe that if someone is terminally or completely incapacitated, physician-assisted suicide should be an option. Others oppose the idea of it due to religious reasons or don’t want to give up hope that their loved one could make a recovery. For doctors, it is a tough decision because of the morals and ethics they may have. Suicide itself is a touchy subject, but there are several things it is good to know about physician-assisted suicide. Many people argue that one of

We all heard of the term of euthanizing an animal to end the animals suffering and pain which is a merciful killing. If euthanizing an animal is moral and legal how does that differ from euthanizing a patient that is suffering as well? The reason we decide to euthanize our pets is not because we don’t love them anymore, but we want them to end their pain and suffering. Furthermore, pets become part of the family and choosing to euthanize them is not an easy decision, but in regards to the pet’s best interest, euthanizing them will be more beneficial. The owner will not have to see their beloved pet suffering and have peace in mind that their pet is not

Laws accommodate that a physician must only diagnose an ill patient that has a future of only six months or less and a second doctor then must agree with the diagnosis (Worsnop, 1). Patients must request the prescription twice verbally and once in written form with at least two weeks hold up between the first and last request (Worsnop, 1). Lastly the doctor who writes the prescription must believe the patient is mentally competent to make the decision. The law also requires that patients be able to take the pills on their own (Worsnop, 1). I believe that it is important to listen to and acknowledge the patient when they express suffering, hopelessness, and depression. I believe that physician-assisted as well as voluntary Euthanasia should be legalized. I believe physician assisted suicide isn’t a “this is right, this is wrong” thing. Individuals have the privilege to bear arms, the right to speak freely, and so on. So why would we be able to not have the flexibility to settle on a choice on whether we need to live or not? At the point when a patient is considering physician assisted suicide anyway, we should be permitted to get physician assisted suicide and determine why this a patient wants and why is getting this help. Overall I believe that physician assisted suicide should be permitted to the individuals who wants and has a

Recently, several states have modeled Oregon’s Right to Die Laws and have added laws that allow assisted suicide, and many more are considering some form of legislation to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia. With modern technology, advances have been made in medicine that allow people to live longer. As a consequence, there are far more terminally ill patients than ever before. Assisted suicide has become a viable alternative for some of these end of life patients. Doctors and other care-givers should not be allowed to assist terminally ill patients end their lives prematurely. Laws that legalize assisted suicide for terminally ill patients should be overturned because they allow a doctor to choose who lives and who dies and have other, unintended consequences that outweigh any benefits.

Assisted Suicide should be made legal because many people suffer from diseases that aren’t always curable, it doesn 't make sense to let them go through all that pain and some families have financial struggles paying for their medical bill. This controversial debate is whether or not assisted suicide or mercy killing should be legal, whether or not doctors should be allowed to help patients kill themselves or give guidance on how to. People argue that assisted suicide should be considered legal, “In a spirit of compassion for all, this manifesto proclaims that every competent adult has the incontestable right to humankind’s ultimate civil and personal liberty -- the right to die in a manner and at a time of their own choosing. Whereas

When your pet is dying and in pain, the humane thing to do is to put your pet down. Euthanasia of pets is something that happens all of the time and is a norm. We love our pets and don’t want them to go through more pain than they have to at the end of their lives. Assisted suicide is more or less the same idea only with terminally ill people. It is legal in Oregon, Washington, Vermont, California and Montana. Within these states, someone who is terminally ill can go to a physician and get a prescription lethal dose of a barbiturate to end their life whenever it seems right. No surprise, there are many opinions and controversies over this being legal. Patients and physicians have differing opinions, but the Vatican is strictly against it. Should you have a right to your own death?

While a physician can give you advice on how to treat a terminally ill patient and explain to you what you can expect from the disease, a physician should not have the right to be a decision maker when relating to euthanasia. This decision should be left up to the family and the patient, and nor should the physician participate in this act or in physician assisted suicide. A physician job is to try and cure you, and/or alleviate you from any time of pain, not kill you. By a physician being able to participate in this kind of act will only create a trust issue between the physician and the patient as well

      Individual cases presented to justify legalizing physician assisted suicide fail to deal with underlying medical failures to control pain, creating an illusion of control over death, and not acknowledging the thousands of patients murdered inappropriately. This is an interesting and a very controversial issue in today’s society. Euthanasia has negative sides, it can hurt society, and everyone needs to learn more bout it.

“The American Medical Association has spoken for all physicians by stating: "Physician-assisted suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physician's role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks" (Dreisbach).