Euthanasia Should Be Legal

3709 Words8 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Euthanasia legal and ethical issues

Euthanasia is a controversial issue. Many different opinions have been formed. From doctors and nurses to family members dealing with loved ones in the hospital, all of them have different ideas for the way they wish to die. However, there are many different issues affecting the legislation and beliefs of legalizing euthanasia. Taking the following aspects into mind, many may get a different understanding as to why legalization of euthanasia is necessary. Some of these include: misunderstanding of what euthanasia really is, doctors and nurses code of ethics, legal cases and laws, religious and personal beliefs, and economics in end-of-life care.

Across Europe palliative care is an intensifying and acknowledged part of healthcare. Palliative care is mostly known as an approach that aims to prevent or reduce suffering and hopelessness at the end of life. Using this information one may understand better as to what euthanasia is associated with. Many people are unable to form solid opinions and stances on the legalization of euthanasia due to their lack of information on the subject. According to the study conducted by the European Association of Palliative Care’s Ethics Task Force, euthanasia is killing on request and can be defined as a doctor intentionally killing a person by the administration of drugs, at that person’s voluntary and competent request.

There are two different types of euthanasia. Medicalized killing of a person without their consent, whether it is non-voluntary, where the person is unable to consent, or involuntary where it is against the will of the person, is not euthanasia, it is however, murder. This means that if euthanasia did occur it would have to be voluntary. The different types of euthanasia woul...

... middle of paper ...

...sh. "Euthanasia: Right to life vs. right to die." Indian Journal of Medical Research Dec. 2012: 899+. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.

Piercy, Mathew. “Euthanasia Is a Rejection of God’s Gift of Life.” The Right to Die.Ed. Jennifer Dorman.Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press, 2010. 11-14. Print.

Quill, Timothy. “The Right to Die May Be an Important Part of End-of-Life Care.” The Right to Die.Ed. Jennifer Dorman.Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press, 2010. 64-71. Print.

"Code of Ethics for Nurses."Code of Ethics for Nurses. Christine Zhou, 15 Feb. 2013. Web.19 Sept. 2013. .

ProCon.org. “Would Financial Motivations Encourage Insurance Companies, Health Care Providers, and Patients to Seek Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide if Those Options Were Legally Available?”ProCon.org. 17 Dec. 2012. Web. 23 Oct. 2013.

Show More
Related

  • Assisted Suicide Euthanasia Essay

    785 Words  | 2 Pages

    In short, euthanasia asks questions that cannot be answered from the perspective of medicine alone. The inappropriateness between assisting voluntary death and the professional ethos of physicians may mean that physicians should not assist death, except it does not necessarily settle the argument of whether anyone ever should. Acceptance for palliative care seems to be growing, but support of assisted suicide is growing also, because end of life issues are kept in the public eye. Additional empirical analysis of this situation is important. Furthermore, this debate could continue to yield insights into the issues around suffering at the end of life.

    Read More

  • Active Euthanasia: Physician Assisted Suicide is Wrong

    1511 Words  | 4 Pages

    Bibliography:.. Bernard, Neal, Ed. & Co. d. a. a. a. a. a. Euthanasia: Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints Series, Series Eds. David L. Bender and Bruno Leone.

    Read More

  • Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide are Murder

    1004 Words  | 3 Pages

    Potts, Stephen G.. "Euthanasia Should Not Be Legalized." Euthanasia: Opposing Viewpoints. Bernards, Neal. ed. San Diego. Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1989.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Euthanasia

    1281 Words  | 3 Pages

    Euthanasia is the fact of ending somebody’s life when assisting him to die peacefully without pain. In most cases, it is a process that leads to end the suffering of human beings due to disease or illness. A person other than the patient is responsible for the act of euthanasia; for example a medical provider who gives the patient the shot that must kill him. When people sign a consent form to have euthanasia, it is considered voluntary, involuntary euthanasia is when they refuse. When people are not alert and oriented they are not allowed to sign any consent including the consent to euthanasia. When euthanasia is practiced in such situation, it is a non-voluntary euthanasia. In sum, people who practice voluntary euthanasia in honoring other

    Read More

  • Bonnie Steinbock The Morality Of Euthanasia

    1590 Words  | 4 Pages

    In this essay, I will discuss whether euthanasia is morally permissible or not. Euthanasia is the intention of ending life due to inevitable pain and suffering. The word euthanasia comes from the Greek words “eu,” which means good, and “thanatosis, which means death. There are two types of euthanasia, active and passive. Active euthanasia is when medical professionals deliberately do something that causes the patient to die, such as giving lethal injections. Passive euthanasia is when a patient dies because the medical professionals do not do anything to keep them alive or they stop doing something that was keeping them alive. Some pros of euthanasia is the freedom to decide your destiny, ending the pain, and to die with dignity. Some cons

    Read More

  • The Right to Physician Assisted Suicide

    1874 Words  | 4 Pages

    The right to assisted suicide is a significant topic that concerns people all over the United States. The debates go back and forth about whether a dying patient has the right to die with the assistance of a physician. Some are against it because of religious and moral reasons. Others are for it because of their compassion and respect for the dying. Physicians are also divided on the issue. They differ where they place the line that separates relief from dying--and killing. For many the main concern with assisted suicide lies with the competence of the terminally ill. Many terminally ill patients who are in the final stages of their lives have requested doctors to aid them in exercising active euthanasia. It is sad to realize that these people are in great agony and that to them the only hope of bringing that agony to a halt is through assisted suicide.When people see the word euthanasia, they see the meaning of the word in two different lights. Euthanasia for some carries a negative connotation; it is the same as murder. For others, however, euthanasia is the act of putting someone to death painlessly, or allowing a person suffering from an incurable and painful disease or condition to die by withholding extreme medical measures. But after studying both sides of the issue, a compassionate individual must conclude that competent terminal patients should be given the right to assisted suicide in order to end their suffering, reduce the damaging financial effects of hospital care on their families, and preserve the individual right of people to determine their own fate.

    Read More

  • The Slippery Slope of Euthanasia

    1061 Words  | 3 Pages

    There are two methods of carrying out euthanasia, the first one is active and the second one is passive. Active euthanasia means the physicians deliberately take actions which cause the death of the patients, for example, the injection of sedatives in excess amount. Passive euthanasia is that the doctors do not take any further therapies to keep the ill patients alive such as switching off the life supporting machines [1]. This essay argues that the legalization of the euthanasia should not be proposed nowadays. It begins by analyzing the problem that may cause in relation to the following aspects: ‘slippery slope’ argument, religious view, vulnerable people and a rebuttal against the fair distribution of medical resources. This essay concludes that the legalization of the voluntary euthanasia brings more harm than good.

    Read More

  • Euthanasia Should Be Legal

    2051 Words  | 5 Pages

    Euthanasia has been an ongoing debate for many years. Everyone has an opinion on why euthanasia should or should not be allowed but, it is as simple as having the choice to die with dignity. If a patient wishes to end his or her life before a disease takes away their quality of life, then the patient should have the option of euthanasia. Although, American society considers euthanasia to be morally wrong euthanasia should be considered respecting a loved one’s wishes. To understand euthanasia, it is important to know the rights humans have at the end of life, that there are acts of passive euthanasia already in practice, and the beneficial aspects.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Euthanasia

    2780 Words  | 6 Pages

    Euthanasia will forever be a highly sensitive and controversial topic in the world we live in and who knows what will really happen in the future. The same question of ‘is the quality of life or the quantity of life more important?’ will still remain. While pondering on the legalization of euthanasia you will have to decide has the gift of life become a punishment?

    Read More

  • The Case for Euthanasia

    2340 Words  | 5 Pages

    In order to provide a framework for my thesis statement on the morality of euthanasia, it is first necessary to define what euthanasia is and the different types of euthanasia. The term Euthanasia originates from the Greek term “eu”, meaning happy or good and “thanatos”, which means death, so the literal definition of the word Euthanasia can be translated to mean “good or happy death”.

    Read More

  • Argument in Favor of Euthanasia

    1897 Words  | 4 Pages

    There are two types of euthanasia; involuntary and voluntary euthanasia. Involuntary euthanasia is when the decision of the...

    Read More

  • A Defense of Euthanasia

    1271 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kuhse, Helga. “Euthanasia.” A Companion to Ethics. Ed. Peter Singer. Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 1991. 294-302. Print.

    Read More

  • Assisted Suicide Should Not be Legalized

    1627 Words  | 4 Pages

    Dougherty, Charles J. & Co. “Legalizing Euthanasia Would Harm Society.” Euthanasia- Opposing Viewpoints. Ed.

    Read More

  • Legalize Euthanasia

    690 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Individuals Do Not Have a Right to Die." Opposing Viewpoints Digests: Euthanasia. Ed. James D. Torr. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1999. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Harford Technical High School - MD. 15 Mar. 2010 .

    Read More

  • Three Reasons Why Euthanasia Should Be Legalized

    452 Words  | 1 Pages

    Euthanasia, according to the dictionary, means the killing of a person who is suffering from an incurable disease. Lately, it had been a huge debate over whether euthanasia should be legalized or not. Personally, I believe that euthanasia should be legalized if it is voluntary. I have three reasons for my argument.

    Read More

More about Euthanasia Should Be Legal

Open Document