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Physician Assisted Suicide

            
            
             Imagine living with the reality that you have leukemia. Given all the details about chemotherapy and knowing the lengthy, painful process still only gives you a twenty-five percent chance of survival you decide to live out your life as comfortably as possible and refuse treatment. In making this decision you decide that when you inevitably become pain ridden and completely dependant on others you would like to die in peace and no longer suffer. How would you feel if the government told you that you couldn't do so? This is where the debate of physician assisted suicide comes into play. Should a person suffering with a terminal illness be able to be assisted in a humane and comfortable death? This question has been argued for many years, laws have been passed then overruled, and many heated debates have started in courtrooms across the country. Some people may think of it as murder or morally wrong to end a life. However some feel it is the most humane thing we can do for .
             our suffering loved ones. Physician assisted suicide or PAS is defined as: a doctor providing the lethal drugs with which a dying person may end their own life. I feel PAS is an important issue that faces society today. I believe it should be legal in all fifty states so that the suffering and terminally ill can choose how they want their lives to end and they may have the option of dying with dignity rather than slowly deteriorating into a completely dependant person (Macionis, 390).
             BACKROUND INFORMATION.
             The issue of PAS is not a new one. Anyone who is diagnosed with a terminal illness always has the right to refuse treatment, which can indirectly cause one's death. However whether or not a doctor should be allowed to help bring about death is the real debate. There have been many attempts by different states to pass laws to make physician assisted suicide legal. For instance, in 1994 two states- Washington and California- asked voters to decide this and in both instances the idea was rejected.


Essays Related to Physician Assisted Suicide

1. The Ethics of Physician Assisted Suicide

Physician assisted suicide occurs when a physician facilitates a patient's death by providing the necessary mean and/or information to enable the patient to perform the life ending act. ... On October 27, 1997, Oregon legalized physician assisted suicide (cite). Physician assisted suicide is practiced in the Netherlands but is criminal prosecution, although such prosecutions are rare. ... Physician assisted suicide is wrong, because it is ending a life that is not ready to be ended. ... If someone turns to physician assisted suicide it is because they are feeling hopeless. ...

  • Word Count: 550
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Euthanasia - Physician Assisted Suicide

The assisted methods are two; euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (PAS). ... Why Allow Assisted Suicide Not at all times can we be contented with what is going around our lives. ... Based on this argument, assisted suicide should be allowed as by choosing the right to die should be the last exercise of autonomy one could wish to enjoy. ... Pereira notes that dilemma of allowing assisted suicide to take course solely should be rested in the hands of the patients. In a nutshell, supports of the assisted suicide seem to have carried the day based on the reason enlisted above....

  • Word Count: 1466
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography

3. Assisted Suicide

Physicians should be allowed to assist in ending the life of a terminally ill, mentally competent person and therefore, physician assisted suicide should be legalized. ... They say that assisted suicide is unethical because it "violates the Hippocratic tradition that requires physicians not to harm their patients" (Komp 6). ... Advocates of assisted suicide believe that appropriate regulations and safeguards could be made to prevent abuse of the practice by physicians and health insurance companies. ... Physician assisted suicide is a compassionate way to end a person's suffering and i...

  • Word Count: 1805
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Legalizing Physician-Assisted Suicide

With physician-assisted suicide, physicians can be show mercy through the relief of a patients pain and suffering. ... Physician-assisted suicide can show mercy by ending that pain, by stopping the suffering. ... However, the morality and legality of physician-assisted suicide always remain in question. ... Other oppositionists argue the legality of physician-assisted suicide. ... While many arguments exist against physician- assisted suicide; the argument of pain treatment brings out the compassion of physician- assisted suicide. ...

  • Word Count: 939
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Physician Assisted Suicide

So, what is physician-assisted suicide?  Physician assisted suicide is when a doctor chooses to aid a patient in the process of killing himself or herself. ... Generally, in America, the practice of physician-assisted suicide is illegal and physicians are liable to face the loss of medicinal practice and imprisonment. ... Death, chose to participate as the first physician to assist in a suicide. ... As a last resort, some of those sufferers might seek other care, the physician assisted suicide, to end life. ...

  • Word Count: 5515
  • Approx Pages: 22
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide"

Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide are very controversial issues. ... The difference between the two is that a physician does physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia could be done by anyone. ... However, in Oregon, it is legal to perform physician-assisted suicide. ... Physician-assisted suicide also is legally recognized in the Netherlands (Caplan, Snyder, & Faber-Langendoen, 2000). ... Some feel that physicians-assisted suicide is ethically disturbing. ...

  • Word Count: 1141
  • Approx Pages: 5

7. Physician-assisted Suicide and Euthanasia

Physician-assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Should Physicians Heed requests to help patients take their own lives? ... The fight to legalize physician assisted suicide of Euthanasia is gaining ground. ... Some consider physician assisted suicide as "cold, heartless murder." ... The uncertain reaction may result in an overwhelming number of physician assisted suicides. ... This may not be influenced either, for physician assisted suicide. ...

  • Word Count: 580
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

8. Legalizing Physician Assisted Suicide

One of the ways that can help these people is physician assisted suicide. ... In order to prevent all these problems, we need to legalize physician assisted suicide. ... They shouldn't ignore what patients claim, and they can be satisfied with physician assisted suicide. ... What they want, is physician assisted suicide. ... Some people claim that physician assisted suicide is against a Hippocratic Oath. ...

  • Word Count: 2115
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Physician-assisted suicide

They are going against this Hippocratic Oath which forbids assisted suicide and serves as a reminder to physicians of the power they have over their patients. Legalizing physician assisted suicide and abandoning the Hippocratic Oath, would weaken the guidelines that help doctors separate their personal judgements from what is best for their patients. ... Physician-assisted suicide undermines medical ethics, it is unable to create any safeguards, and opens the door to euthanasia abuses. ... Physicians should not think lethal injection or suicide pills to be the best way. ... Assisted su...

  • Word Count: 864
  • Approx Pages: 3

10. Physician assisted suicide

My view regarding physician assisted suicide is that as long as a person is deemed competent, he or she should be allowed to determine if they would like to end their life. ... But if legislation were drafted correctly, such as laws being put forth to help regulate physician assisted suicide, come of the issues that come up could be avoided. ... I believe that Physician Assisted Suicide is also a rational and ethical decision for those who choose to die in order to avoid unbearable suffering. ... Self inflicted suicide runs along the same lines of physician assisted suicide, but it is not cons...

  • Word Count: 1151
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

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