Brainstorming: Euthanasia

EUTHANASIA

Many definitions:
-The Pro-Life Alliance defines it as: 'Any action or omission intended to end the life of a patient on the grounds that his or her life is not worth living.'
-The Voluntary Euthanasia Society looks to the word's Greek origins - 'eu' and 'thanatos', which together mean 'a good death' - and say a modern definition is: 'A good death brought about by a doctor providing drugs or an injection to bring a peaceful end to the dying process.'
-Three classes of euthanasia can be identified - passive euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide and active euthanasia - although not all groups would acknowledge them.

Pros:
-Legalizing euthanasia would help stop suffering of terminally ill patients. It would be inhuman and unfair to make them go through the unbearable pain.
-People with incurable diseases or the one’s where effective cure wouldn’t do enough good to their quality of life should be given the option of induced death.
-Though killing in an attempt to defend oneself is far different than mercy killing, law does find it approvable. Similarly, the motive of euthanasia is to "aid-in-dying" painlessly and thus should be considered and accepted by law.
-In an attempt to provide medical and emotional care to the patient, a doctor should prescribe medicines that will relieve his or her suffering even if the medications cause gross side effects. This means that dealing with agony and distress should be the priority even if it affects the life expectancy. Euthanasia follows the same theory of dealing with torment in a way to help one die peacefully out of the compromising situation.
-Euthanasia should be a natural extension of patients’ rights allowing him to decide the value of life and death for him. Maintaining life support systems against patients’ wish is considered unethical by legal and medical law.
-The pain of waiting for death is frightening and traumatic.

Cons:
-Mercy killing is morally incorrect and should be forbidden by law. It’s a homicide and murdering another human.
-Human life deserves exceptional security and protection. Advanced medical technology has made it possible to enhance human life span and quality of life. Rehabilitation centers are better alternatives to help disabled or patients approaching death live a pain-free life.
-Even doctors cannot predict about period of death and whether there is a possibility of remission or recovery with the aid of other advanced treatments. So, implementing euthanasia would mean many unlawful deaths that could have survived later. Legalizing euthanasia would be like empowering law abusers and increasing distrustfulness of patients towards doctors.
-Mercy killing would cause decline in medical care and cause victimization of the most vulnerable society. Would mercy killing transform itself from the "right to die" to "right to kill"?
-There is a possibility of euthanasia being mishandled.
-Legalizing euthanasia could create a 'slippery slope' to involuntary euthanasia.

Important Dates

1950- The World Medical Association votes to recommend to all national medical associations that euthanasia be condemned "under any circumstances." In the same year, the World Medical Association issues a statement that the majority of doctors do not believe in euthanasia.
1990- Jack Kevorkian, MD, assists Janet Adkins, a Hemlock Society member, in committing suicide in Michigan. Adkins death is the first of many suicides in which Dr. Kevorkian assists.
1994- The Oregon Death with Dignity Act is passed, becoming the first law in American history permitting physician-assisted suicide.
1997- The Supreme Court rules in Washington v. Glucksburg and Vacco v. Quill that there is not a constitutional right to die.

1 comment:

Namų Darkytoja said...

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