Physician Assisted Suicide Is Considered A Taboo Subject...

Keeley Echols 3rd/7th Period Medical Ethics Paper For a long time, euthanasia was considered a taboo subject. No one liked to talk about it because of how wrong it seemed to be. Today, it still is a relatively taboo subject, however, it is started being accepted in more places over time. To start off examining this broad topic, one should ask themselves, what is euthanasia? According to dictionary.com, euthanasia is ?the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, a person or animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition.? Euthanasia is closely related to physician-assisted suicide. These two terms are mostly used interchangeably. However, one key difference between the two is that while euthanasia is mainly withholding extreme medical measures, physician-assisted suicide is defined as ?a situation in which a physician provides the means of death for a gravely ill patient but the patient takes the final step.? (dictionary.com) So in all reality, while these two terms are used interchangeably, physician-assisted suicide is taking it one step farther because the physician provides the means for the patient to die. In the United States, euthanasia is still illegal with the exceptions of Oregon, Washington, Vermont, California and Montana. Oregon was the first state to legalize it in November of 1997. Oregon was followed by Washington in November of 2008, then Montana in December of 2009.Show MoreRelatedPhysician Assisted Suicide Research Paper1520 Words   |  7 Pagesonly several states legally recognize physician-assisted suicide as an option for families and terminally ill patients hoping to embrace a death with dignity. Although there is a growing movement to promote access to physician-assisted suicide, the topic is still widely regarded as taboo. As of 2016, the states of Washington, Oregon, Vermont, Colorado, New Jersey, and California are the only states to allow full and legal access to physician-assisted suicide. A longside those states are Montana andRead MoreAmerica Needs Voluntary Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide Essay1081 Words   |  5 Pageshear the word suicide it invokes controversy. Although it is a taboo subject; if a loved one was faced with a terminal illness becoming extremely critical this would pose a moral question. Could a person be willing to accept the fact their family member intended to use medical assisted suicide? Very few individuals would agree with this, but in the same instance should a human being want their relative to be in unbearable pain? According to the author, â€Å"Indeed, physician-assisted suicide implies notRead MoreLegalize Euthanasia2161 Words   |  9 Pagesinevitable. There is no miracle cure to fix it and to keep the subject in the dark could be considered irresponsible. Thesis End of life discussion are to be used to talk about options available to patients as they face a terminal illness or just old age. The options available are many; from do not resuscitate orders to palliative care. There are a few places in the world that extend those options to physician assisted suicide (PAS) and Euthanasia. These options should be discussed and evenRead MoreThe Hidden Potential Of Euthanasia1006 Words   |  5 Pagescapacity to make the decision themselves. As always, with such a taboo subject there are opposers and there are supporters of Euthanasia. A majority of the people involved in the debate are opposed to assisted suicide in many ways. These areas include the religious aspects, the Hippocratic Oath and palliative care. When it comes to the topic of religion, Christians have most adamantly protested against the idea of physician assisted suicide. A vast majority of Christians declare that â€Å"the arguments areRead MoreEuthanasi A Way Out Of Suffering1742 Words   |  7 Pageseuthanization was in ancient Greece and Rome during five B.C. During this time suicide and mercy killings were also not frowned on so euthanizing humans was not seen as anything bizarre or unorthodox (Staff, 2015). In five B.C. mercy killing was not an unholy act according to the religion the Greeks and Romans follow. In fact, euthanasia has only been disapproved of in fairly recent years, the first law against assisted death was in the seventeenth century in colonial America and in recent times mercyRead MoreThe Euthanasia Debate Essay1290 Words   |  6 PagesMost people cringe at the thought of suicide, but is euthanasia the same thing? Do human beings have the right to choose death? â€Å"Americans have develope d a paradoxical relationship with death-we know more about the causes and conditions surrounding death, but we have not equipped ourselves emotionally to cope with dying and death (Bender and B. Leone).† Death is a scary subject for all humans. And death caused by oneself, or suicide, is even scarier. Suicide on a medical terms, or euthanasiaRead MoreAssisted Suicide And The United States2826 Words   |  12 Pagesago in Ancient Greece up until modern times with Doctor Kevorkian, physician-assisted suicide, and euthanasia are all highly debated topics that cause both legal and moral dilemmas, but provide patients with benefits such as financial and pain relief. Assisted suicide should be legalized in the United States to prevent pain and suffering for the patients and their families. Cultures around the world have been using assisted suicide to provide an easy and painless death for hundreds of years. â€Å"EuthanasiaRead MoreDeath Is A Scary Subject For All Humans936 Words   |  4 Pagesthought of suicide, but euthanasia is an escape from a prolonged life of suffering, and human beings should have the right to choose their own death. â€Å"Americans have developed a paradoxical relationship with death-we know more about the causes and conditions surrounding death, but we have not equipped ourselves emotionally to cope with dying and death (Bender and B. Leone).† Death is a scary subject for all humans. And death caused by oneself, or suicide, is even scarier. Suicide in medicalRead MoreEuthanasia Should be Legalized1776 Words   |  8 Pageswhole society, religion simply cannot play a bigger role than a personal opinion. Since Euthanasia comes in several different forms, I am choosing to discuss about assisted suicide because this form of Euthanasia is the most relevant one to Dr. Kevorkian’s practices and was used for the majority of his cases. Assisted suicide is the suicide of a patient suffering from an incurable disease, effected by the taking of a lethal drugs provided by a doctor for this purpose. If a terminal- ill patient is sufferingRead MoreEuthanasi The Issue Of Legalizing Euthanasia1662 Words   |  7 PagesNetherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland, Germany, Albania, Colombia, Japan and in the US states of Washington, Oregon, Vermont, New Mexico and Montana and will be in California on January 1, 2016. In the countries that legalize it, has had mostly positive effects over individual’s quality of life, but since Euthanasia is a very sensitive issue even a small chance of misuse may hinder its probability of ever being considered to bec ome legalized. What is Euthanasia