The Ethical Implications Of Euthanasia And Nursing Practice

Albert Camus once quoted, “But in the end, one needs more courage to live than to kill them self.” Today I will be discussing the topic of Euthanasia also known as “assisted suicide.” The word originated from the Greeks, meaning “good death”. Euthanasia refers to the ending of one’s life, primarily to end suffering and pain. Euthanasia is a controversial topic and generates many political and religious debates. Although euthanasia is illegal in Canada, in some jurisdictions such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and the American states of Washington, Oregon and Montana, euthanasia is a legal and common practice.

Voluntary Euthanasia has been considered a controversial topic for many decades. The idea of committing an act that involves the taking of human life is not one that many people would care to discuss openly. The main argument is that a person who has been diagnosed with an incurable illness and is in extreme pain and their ability to move has been limited, while that person still has control over their destiney should they be allowed take their own life (Bowie, R.2001). The worldwide debate weather one should be allowed to end a life is still one of the biggest ethical issues. The attempt to providing the rights of the individual is in conflict with the moral values of society. Voluntary Euthanasia has been highly rejected by many religious and pro-life institutions.

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.

Many nurses are regularly confronted with the hopelessness and exhaustion of patients and their families making it difficult for them to find balance between the preservation of life and the enablement of a dignified death. Nurses must acknowledge their own feelings of sorrow, fear, dismay and helplessness and recognize the impact of these emotions in clinical decision making. These distressing pressures may cause a nurse to contemplate intentionally assist in ending a patient's life as a humane and compassionate answer, however; the conventional goals and standards of the nursing profession mitigate against it.

Voluntary Euthanasia is in of itself, entirely a controversial issue. What is Voluntary Euthanasia? Voluntary Euthanasia is intentionally bringing about the death of another person who has either requested it or given their consent. In this paper, we will explore the intricacies of voluntary euthanasia, the issues, the moral dilemma, and how different types of ethicists would view the act.

The deliberate act of ending another 's life, given his or her consent, is formally referred to as euthanasia. At present, euthanasia is one of the most controversial social-ethical issues that we face, in that it deals with a sensitive subject matter where there is much uncertainty as to what position one ought to take. Deliberately killing another person is presumed by most rational people as a fundamental evil act. However, when that person gives his or her consent to do so, this seems to give rise to an exceptional case. This can be illustrated in the most common case of euthanasia, where the person who is willing to die suffers from an illness that causes great pain, and will result in his or her demise in the not-so-distant future.

The discourse of euthanasia in a contemporary setting is highly relevant within various institutional systems, working as a means of invoking change and establishing discussion surrounding the legalisation of assisted suicide in a medical setting. The discourse provokes the debate surrounding this medical process whilst allowing for the establishment of considerations from various standpoints such as; legally, medically, culturally and religiously. The introduction of legalised euthanasia practice in various western countries in recent times has further enhanced the relevance of this discourse.

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

The American Nurses Association regards active euthanasia inconsistent with the Code for Nurses and is considered ethically unacceptable. It has been the role of a nurse to promote, preserve, and protect human life. As members of the profession, nurses are obligated to offer end of life care, which includes the promotion of comfort for pain and suffering, and foregoing life sustaining treatments. Care does not include deliberately terminating life.

The term “euthanasia” is derived from Greek, and means “Good death.” It is a broad term for mercy killing, which is a plea to euthanasia. It represents a serious socio-legal debate. People do not always die well. Some afflictions cause people to suffer extreme physical pain in their last days, and euthanasia may seem a compassionate way to end the pain. The case of Karen Ann Quinlan set a precedent for patient’s right to refuse unwanted medical treatment. However, the credit of bringing euthanasia to the public goes to Jack Kevorkian.

Euthanasia is an action with a medical profession’s help to finish a patient’s life with the patient’s requirement (D, np). In many people’s mind, euthanasia gives them a picture of patients struggling miserably at the edge of death (E, np). It is a controversial topic through centuries. A lot of people support it because they consider it is a useful treatment to those patients suffering from physically and mentally. Meanwhile, same amount of people try to find negative impacts of it to against it. Euthanasia can be classified into three conditions. First, patients ask for it of their free will. Second, patients who do not have capability to make the choice to live or to die are carried out of this treatment. Third, patients who have ability to agree or reject the treatment are euthanized by medical professions without notice (Diaconescu, 474). Although legalizing euthanasia might bring peace to the patients who have been suffering, it does not have effective protection and enough controls.

Euthanasia is defined as, "The act or practice of putting to death painlessly a person suffering from an incurable disease." Euthanasia can be traced back as far back as the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. It was sometimes allowed in these civilizations to help others die. Voluntary euthanasia was approved in these ancient societies. Today, the practice of euthanasia causes great controversy. Both pro-life groups and right-to-die groups present arguments for their different sides. Pro-life groups make arguments and present fears against euthanasia. I contend that the case for the right to die is the stronger argument.

Euthanasia, which is also referred to as mercy killing, is the act of ending someone’s life either passively or actively, usually for the purpose of relieving pain and suffering. “All forms of euthanasia require an intention to accelerate death in order to benefit patients experiencing a poor quality of life” (Sayers, 2005). It is a highly controversial subject that often leaves a person with mixed emotions and beliefs. Opinions regarding this topic hinge on the health and mental state of the victim as well as method of death. It raises legal issues as well as the issue of morals and ethics. Euthanasia is divided into two different categories, passive euthanasia and active euthanasia. “There are unavoidable uncertainties in both active and

The question of euthanasia raises serious moral issues, since it implies that active measures will be taken to terminate human life. The definition of “euthanasia” is taken from Keown (1995) with the term mainly refers to a decision that is concerned with direct interventions or withholding of life-prolonging measures and that choice agrees with a person’s own will. Euthanasia can be mainly classified into voluntary and involuntary ones. As involuntary euthanasia is conducted in the absence of an individual’s consent, it is believed to be a kind of murder. While voluntary euthanasia is with the person’s direct consent, it is still highly controversial and is the focus of discussion in this essay.

Euthanasia is a controversial contemporary issue discussed in philosophy and bioethics. The debate has encapsulated regions of the United States and Europe. An array of research has established evidence of euthanasia, in light of ‘treatment’ for terminally ill patients and any individual who wishes to have the right to die. Generally, euthanasia is regarded as, a criminal homicide at the request of a suffering patient. Individuals who are in favor of euthanasia have expressed reasons for their passionate support of euthanasia. Researchers have conducted research mainly in the state of Oregon in which euthanasia has been legalized since 1997, for the past 20-years. Reference is also made of Washington, Montana, Vermont and Mexico. On the international scale regions in Europe such as the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK has legalized Physician-assisted suicide. These countries have become models for others who have shown interest in Euthanasia and want to legalize Physician-assisted suicide. Research has shed light on the nature of medicine from the perspective the family members and physicians.