Voluntary euthanasia or physician assisted suicide (PAD) is a heated topic and caregivers may be faced with discussing this option with a terminal patient and their family members. Like doctors, nurses also take an oath “to do no harm” so this topic may be difficult to reconcile as an option ("Florence Nightingale Pledge"). Practicing nurses need to know that in Washington, Vermont and Oregon, patients can acquire lethal prescriptions from their provider, this has commonly been known as Death with Dignity. While in New Mexico, patients have a constitutional right to aid in dying however this decision remains in dispute (Barone "See Which States Allow Assisted Suicide"). I certainly feel lucky to live in Washington State because it is one of
…show more content…
After all, the ultimate motive is to aid in dying painlessly and peacefully. In this way, autonomy involving life and death decisions are maintained. Now, those who oppose voluntary euthanasia consider this choice unethical and label it as homicide. These opponents might insist upon other options such as rehabilitation and palliative care centers as alternatives to assist dying patients. Lastly, they claim that it is difficult to tell if assisted suicide is voluntary or insisted by others because those that are ill might feel as if they are burdening their caretakers ("Asia Pacific Economics Blog"). The Death with Dignity Act can also be controversial because the perception of dignity varies from person to person. Dr. Elizabeth Telfer writes in her essay, “dignity involves: not being dependent on other people or on things; self-control and autonomy; privacy; the maintenance of one 's own standards, of all kinds; self-esteem” ("Philosophical Approaches to the Dilemma of Death with Dignity"). I contend dignity refers to the actual true quality of life and “a death with dignity is a death which enables the dying person to retain the elements of dignity which he or she values”(Asia Pacific Economics …show more content…
Diagnosed with terminal brain cancer at the age of 29 and with only one year into her marriage, she was a firm believer that she alone should have the choice to decide the ending to her story. While researching PAD she determined that “(i)t is an end-of-life option for mentally competent, terminally ill patients with a prognosis of six months or less to live. It would enable me to use the medical practice of aid in dying: I could request and receive a prescription from a physician for medication that I could self-ingest to end my dying process if it becomes unbearable”(Maynard "My Right to Death with Dignity at 29"). Ms. Maynard writes: “After months of research, my family and I reached a heartbreaking conclusion: There is no treatment that would save my life, and the recommended treatments would have destroyed the time I had left” ("My Right to Death with Dignity at 29"). What is so remarkable about Ms. Maynard is that she understood this right to die as an option. She didn’t have to use the medication to end her life, but knowing that it was available if needed provided the comfort she needed while faced with death. She knew that she could change her mind at any
After all, the ultimate motive is to aid in dying painlessly and peacefully. In this way, autonomy involving life and death decisions are maintained. Now, those who oppose voluntary euthanasia consider this choice unethical and label it as homicide. These opponents might insist upon other options such as rehabilitation and palliative care centers as alternatives to assist dying patients. Lastly, they claim that it is difficult to tell if assisted suicide is voluntary or insisted by others because those that are ill might feel as if they are burdening their caretakers ("Asia Pacific Economics Blog"). The Death with Dignity Act can also be controversial because the perception of dignity varies from person to person. Dr. Elizabeth Telfer writes in her essay, “dignity involves: not being dependent on other people or on things; self-control and autonomy; privacy; the maintenance of one 's own standards, of all kinds; self-esteem” ("Philosophical Approaches to the Dilemma of Death with Dignity"). I contend dignity refers to the actual true quality of life and “a death with dignity is a death which enables the dying person to retain the elements of dignity which he or she values”(Asia Pacific Economics …show more content…
Diagnosed with terminal brain cancer at the age of 29 and with only one year into her marriage, she was a firm believer that she alone should have the choice to decide the ending to her story. While researching PAD she determined that “(i)t is an end-of-life option for mentally competent, terminally ill patients with a prognosis of six months or less to live. It would enable me to use the medical practice of aid in dying: I could request and receive a prescription from a physician for medication that I could self-ingest to end my dying process if it becomes unbearable”(Maynard "My Right to Death with Dignity at 29"). Ms. Maynard writes: “After months of research, my family and I reached a heartbreaking conclusion: There is no treatment that would save my life, and the recommended treatments would have destroyed the time I had left” ("My Right to Death with Dignity at 29"). What is so remarkable about Ms. Maynard is that she understood this right to die as an option. She didn’t have to use the medication to end her life, but knowing that it was available if needed provided the comfort she needed while faced with death. She knew that she could change her mind at any