Recent stories in the news have posed this controversial question: should terminally ill patients have the right to end their own lives? Empathetic stories of terminally ill patients’ last wishes have captured attention of the media and created a controversial debate on the ethics and morals of physician assisted suicide, otherwise known as PAS. Some claim that PAS is inhumane and unethical, while others insist that it is a given right to anybody under such extreme circumstances. In his article, “Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Always Wrong,” Ryan T. Anderson attempts to convey to citizens and policymakers that legalizing PAS across the country would be a grave mistake. However, Anderson’s argument is weak due to a series of logical fallacies
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Typically, these types of patients undergo a great deal amount of physical in the remaining months of their life. In most cases, pain management and other palliative medicine to manage their symptoms is simply not enough. During times like these, there is nothing a doctor can prescribe these patients to make the pain or the presence of imminent death disappear. In Unplugged, the author expresses the stigma associated with death. “Doctors learn in medical school to assess, treat, and care. They then move into a hospital culture where a death, even among aged, is seen as a failure,” (102). In physician assisted suicide, it is imperative to realize that the patient is choosing to die with dignity and on their own terms instead of being deteriorated by sickness. Ultimately, a doctor’s main purpose is to cure their patient, but in extreme cases with no cure, there is nothing one can do except to alleviate suffering. By giving the patient the choice of death, physicians are allowing their patient to die on their own terms and with …show more content…
Currently, there are only five states in which it is legal. He argues that instead of offering patients hastened death, doctors should instead provide care and make the patient as comfortable as they can in their final months. This issue has become very controversial and many have questioned the ethics and morals behind it. While it is nobody’s ultimate wish to die, giving this alternative gives comfort to the patient that they do not have to undergo a prolonged amount of suffering. Also, a doctors’ main goal is to help and care for their patients in any and all possible ways. By giving a way out, a doctor is not “killing” their patient, but instead making them more comfortable under the harsh circumstances. However, it is important that the strict requirements for eligibility remain intact. Physician assisted suicide should only be an option for patients during unfortunate circumstances in which they have a limited amount of time left. PAS should never be an option for people who are not terminally ill, including those with depression. This would ensure that PAS is only used for the right reasons and does not threaten the weak and vulnerable. While this is a difficult decision for any patient and their family to make, physician assisted suicide is a right that any terminally ill patient should have access
Typically, these types of patients undergo a great deal amount of physical in the remaining months of their life. In most cases, pain management and other palliative medicine to manage their symptoms is simply not enough. During times like these, there is nothing a doctor can prescribe these patients to make the pain or the presence of imminent death disappear. In Unplugged, the author expresses the stigma associated with death. “Doctors learn in medical school to assess, treat, and care. They then move into a hospital culture where a death, even among aged, is seen as a failure,” (102). In physician assisted suicide, it is imperative to realize that the patient is choosing to die with dignity and on their own terms instead of being deteriorated by sickness. Ultimately, a doctor’s main purpose is to cure their patient, but in extreme cases with no cure, there is nothing one can do except to alleviate suffering. By giving the patient the choice of death, physicians are allowing their patient to die on their own terms and with …show more content…
Currently, there are only five states in which it is legal. He argues that instead of offering patients hastened death, doctors should instead provide care and make the patient as comfortable as they can in their final months. This issue has become very controversial and many have questioned the ethics and morals behind it. While it is nobody’s ultimate wish to die, giving this alternative gives comfort to the patient that they do not have to undergo a prolonged amount of suffering. Also, a doctors’ main goal is to help and care for their patients in any and all possible ways. By giving a way out, a doctor is not “killing” their patient, but instead making them more comfortable under the harsh circumstances. However, it is important that the strict requirements for eligibility remain intact. Physician assisted suicide should only be an option for patients during unfortunate circumstances in which they have a limited amount of time left. PAS should never be an option for people who are not terminally ill, including those with depression. This would ensure that PAS is only used for the right reasons and does not threaten the weak and vulnerable. While this is a difficult decision for any patient and their family to make, physician assisted suicide is a right that any terminally ill patient should have access