The issue of Euthanasia has raged for centuries. The term euthanasia comes from a word in the Greek language that literally means, “easy (or good) death”. It is one of the most argument fraught public policy issues being debated, today. Also called “mercy killing”, euthanasia is the act of deliberately making or helping someone die, instead of allowing nature to take its course. Properly understood, there are two types of Euthanasia: Active and Passive. Active Euthanasia occurs when the medical professionals, or another person, deliberately do something that causes the patient to die. Passive Euthanasia occurs when the patient dies because the medical professionals either don't do something necessary to keep the patient alive, or when they …show more content…
In modern society, the reasons for euthanasia are simple, but nonetheless complex. In this essay we are going to explore the statement: “Euthanasia is unethical, immoral, and unbiblical.” which will be proven by discussing how it is murder, a misapplication of the physicians role, and entirely unbiblical.
A man named George Delury helped his wife, Myrna Lebov, commit suicide. Ms. Lebov was suffering from multiple sclerosis and near the end of her life was able to only wash her hands and face, feed herself if the food had already been cut, apply her makeup, and brush her teeth. In addition, her memory had begun to be affected. When she asked her husband if he would help her end her life, he reported that “I said, of course I'd help. I also said in effect that I was astonished that she'd fought so hard for so long to keep going. I would have quite sooner.” In search of a solution to this problem he discovered one of the medications his wife was taking if taken in a particularly large dose could prove fatal. So over several months she cut back on her dosage, saving enough of the medicine to kill herself. Then on Independence Day they shared their traditional meal of chicken and wine, and he diluted the pills
Euthanasia can be both voluntary and involuntary, with voluntary euthanasia this means consent is given while with involuntary; this case is when a patient is capable of giving consent. There is also non-voluntary euthanasia and in this case the patient is unable to give consent then a family member or an appropriate person will give consent (Medical News Today, 2023). Meanwhile with Physician assisted suicide this is where a doctor will assist a person in ending their life at their request, it most times is due to long suffering from an ailment. Euthanasia and assisted suicide vary in that the patient makes the final decision in the latter; yet, the terms assisted death and euthanasia can be mixed (Picón-Jaimes et al.,
Introduction Significance of Euthanasia The social topic of euthanasia has been debated for centuries with various reasonings as to why it is accepted in some communities and not accepted in others. Euthanasia is controversial because people are killing themselves, which influence customs in national society. Purpose of Investigation
The possible legalization of euthanasia can cause a great disturbance in how people view life and death and the simplicity of how they would treat it. "There are many fairly severely handicapped people for whom a simple, affectionate life is possible." (Foot, p. 94) As demonstrated, the decision of terminating a person 's life is a very fragile and difficult one, emotionally and mentally. Nevertheless, it’s a choice we can make if it is passive euthanasia being expressed.
Euthanasia is the deliberate killing under the impulse of compassion in order to relieve the physical pain of a person suffering (Diaconescu 2012, p.474). According to Thiroux and Krasemann, (2012) Euthanasia has existed in human history from ancient’s times, although within twentieth century it is now being considered, as a type of “mercy killing”, in which is a form of murder within most countries of the world. Healey (1997) stated “euthanasia always involves an intention to kill” ethical debates on the topic continue to be an ongoing issue, this essay will distinguish the unethical notions of euthanasia by considering and implementing the theoretical concepts of the divine command theory and Rule utilitarianism theory. Divine Command Theory emphasises on the rules for determining one’s actions and motives, Christianity for example, the command of ‘thou shalt not kill’ reflects on the sanctity of life, therefore
Active euthanasia is killing a patient who requests to die. For example, a patient with a terminal illness may wish to end their battle. To fulfill these wishes the physician may administer a lethal injection. Except in special circumstances, it is illegal to deliberately cause the death of another person. I contend that life is a gift from God and he has the ultimate power to decide when to take this privilege away.
Euthanasia is vastly controversial around the globe. Euthanasia is the act of painlessly killing a person either with serious medical conditions, or in a few places around the world patients can be killed solely out of desire. This can be broken down into two forms, passive or active euthanasia. The passive form is known as letting the patient die, or withholding the necessary medical treatment, while active is administering a drug that results in death (Vaughn 264). After reading Rachels and Williams readings of their views on euthanasia, I know have a clearer view of my side in this debate.
Euthanasia is the prescription of voluntary suicide to an individual. It is a topical issue within ethical discussion as conflicting viewpoints are prevalent. Often in hospitals, when a patient has become very ill to the extent that death is in sight, yet there is a long and painful journey towards this end, euthanasia
A controversial practice that invokes a debate over how beneficial its intentions are is the use of euthanasia. The argument switches between whether or not putting terminally ill patients to death with the assistance of a physician is justifiable and right. Legalizing the practice of euthanasia is a significant topic among many people in society, including doctors and nurses in the medical field, as it forces people to decide where to draw the line between relieving pain and simply killing. While some people see euthanasia as a way to helping a patient by eliminating their pain, it is completely rejected by others who see it as a method of killing.
In active euthanasia ill people dead by using lethal substances deliberately, such as lethal injection. Each type subdivided into 3 subordinate types, included voluntary, involuntary and non-voluntary. In voluntary euthanasia ill people initiatively request for their own death. Involuntary euthanasia ill people wants to live but is killed anyway. Non-voluntary euthanasia ill people are unconscious or unable to make a meaningful choice between living and dying, and relative and doctors takes the
Euthanasia is usually used to refer to active euthanasia, and in this sense, euthanasia is usually considered to be criminal homicide, but voluntary, passive euthanasia is widely non-criminal. Voluntary Euthanasia is conducted with the consent of the patient while Involuntary Euthanasia is conducted against the will of the patient. Beginning with the philosophical aspects of euthanasia we must first understand the importance of the sanctity of life. Human life is sacred because God made humankind in His own image, and that each individual human
In this case, healthcare professionals actively participate in the patient death. According to ethical principles, healthcare professionals should do good and do no harm for patients. Therefore, assisting in her death violates the principle of nonmaleficence. In addition, active euthanasia defines as an intentional act of ending patients lives, whether or not the dying patients request. Four states, Oregon, Washington, Vermont, and Montana have approved laws of the practice of physician-assisted suicide.
However, this interchanging use of these terms is strictly not appropriate. While it is acknowledged that there may be no morally significant difference between assisted suicide and voluntary, active euthanasia, there is nevertheless a qualitative difference between them. According to Brock (1993), with assisted suicide, a qualified medical practitioner supplies the patient with means for taking his own life, unlike in the case of voluntary active euthanasia; it is the patient and not the doctor, who acts last. To put it simply, in the case of voluntary, active euthanasia it is the qualified medical practitioner who kills the patient, whereas in the case of assisted suicide it is the patient who kills his or her self (Johnstone,
Introduction With reference to the question posed, it has been suggested that euthanasia may be defined as “the act of intentionally causing the painless death of a sick person”. In other words, it bears the meaning of a “painless, happy or good death” as derived from the ancient Greek language – “eu”, meaning good; and “thanatos”, meaning death. Due to the rapid advancements in medical treatments, patients are capable of being kept “alive” for indefinite periods of time. Hence, in order to distinguish the ancient concept of allowing a patient to die and neglecting them treatment, the medical community has encompassed the idea of drawing a line between active euthanasia and passive euthanasia .
The act of euthanasia, whether active or passive, is heavily obstructed in the medical field. Through medical ethics, the act of passive euthanasia is condoned by withholding treatment and thus, allowing the patient to die. Without any direct contact with the patient, the doctor is not considered as the cause of death. Thus, the medical field views passive euthanasia as of lesser and more permissible value in comparison to active euthanasia. In the statement made by the House of Delegates of the American Medical Association, they perceive this as contrary to mercy killing, as it is, the cessation of the employment of extraordinary means to prolong the life of the body when there is irrefutable evidence that biological death is imminent is the decision of the patient and/or his immediate family.
Passive euthanasia refers to the withdrawal of treatment that keeps the patient alive. Voluntary euthanasia means that the patient requests assisted suicide, while involuntary euthanasia means that it is done against the patient’s will. Euthanasia started in both the Roman Empire and Greece. In ancient Rome, euthanasia was considered a crime and was taken as murder. In general, Greece accepted euthanasia for patients who are suffering from extreme pain.