What We Owe to Terminally Ill Patients: The Option of Physician-Assisted Suicide

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 224-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hon-Lam Li
Keyword(s):  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients

scholarly journals Relations between Desire for Early Death, Depressive Symptoms and Antidepressant Prescribing in Terminally Ill Patients with Cancer

2002 ◽  
Vol 95 (8) ◽  
pp. 386-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Tiernan ◽  
P Casey ◽  
C O'Boyle ◽  
G Birkbeck ◽  
M Mangan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Early Death ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Patients With Cancer ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients ◽  
Treatment Of Depression

Some patients with advanced cancer express the wish for an early death. This may be associated with depression. We examined the relations between depressive symptoms and desire for early death (natural or by euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide) in 142 terminally ill patients with cancer being cared for by a specialist palliative care team. They completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale questionnaire and answered four supplementary questions on desire for early death. Only 2 patients expressed a strong wish for death by some form of suicide or euthanasia. 120 denied that they ever wished for early release. The desire for early death correlated with depression scores. Depressive symptoms were common in the whole group but few were on antidepressant therapy. Better recognition and treatment of depression might improve the lives of people with terminal illness and so lessen desire for early death, whether natural or by suicide.

Relatives' Perspective on the Terminally Ill Patients Who Died after Euthanasia or Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Interview Study in the Netherlands

Death Studies ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Jacques Georges ◽  
Bregje D. Onwuteaka-Philipsen ◽  
Martien T. Muller ◽  
Gerrit van der Wal ◽  
Agnes van der Heide ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients

scholarly journals Attitudes of Terminally Ill Patients Toward Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide

2000 ◽  
Vol 160 (16) ◽  
pp. 2454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith G. Wilson ◽  
John F. Scott ◽  
Ian D. Graham ◽  
Jean F. Kozak ◽  
Susan Chater ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients

Right to Try and Physician Assisted Suicide: Similar or Different?

2021 ◽  
Vol 66 (Special Issue) ◽  
pp. 122-122
Author(s):  
Andrea Martani ◽  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
The United States ◽  
Right To Die ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients ◽  
Conflicting Interests ◽  
Life Circumstances ◽  
Experimental Treatments ◽  
The Right

"In the last few years, the debate whether terminally ill patients should have access to experimental treatments without governmental supervision has intensified. The so-called “Right-to-Try” (RTT) doctrine has become popular especially in the United States, where the federal parliament passed a bill allowing such practices. As many other policies concerning patients’ autonomy in end-of-life circumstances, the appropriateness of RTT has often been challenged. In this context, some authors recently put forward the argument that states where it is allowed to request physician assisted suicide (PAS) should also necessarily recognize a RTT. In the authors’ own words: “if states can give a terminally ill patient the right to die using medications with 100% probability of being unsafe and ineffective against his/her disease [i.e. the substances used for PAS], they should also be able to grant terminally ill patients a right to try medications with less than 100% probability of being unsafe and ineffective [i.e. ET]”. In this contribution, I will question this argument by underlying three flaws in the authors’ comparison of RTT and PAS. First, there is a fundamental distinction in the nature of the choices between the two situations concerning the (un)certainty of their outcomes. Second, the number of actors (and their potential conflicting interests) involved in these two situations is different. Third, the authors’ understanding of the object of patients’ rights in PAS is partially incorrect. I will conclude by arguing that, although reasons might exist to support RTT, such comparison with PAS is not one of them. "

Attitudes and Desires of Terminally Ill Patients Regarding Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide (DRAFT)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Jung Kim
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Severe Pain ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients ◽  
Over Time

No studies have explicitly addressed the attitudes and desires of terminally ill patients on euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (PAS). In this prospective cohort study, 988 terminally ill patients and 893 caregivers were surveyed. A total of 60.2% patients supported euthanasia or PAS in a standard poll question, but only 10.6% seriously considered these interventions for themselves. Patients with depressive symptoms, moderate to severe pain, and significant care needs were more likely to consider euthanasia and PAS. Half of the patients who initially considered euthanasia or PAS changed their minds at the follow-up interview, and an almost equal number newly considered these interventions. Patients with depressive symptoms and dyspnea were more likely to change their minds over time. According to the caregivers of 256 deceased patients, 5.6% of patients discussed euthanasia or PAS in the last month of life, 2.5% hoarded drugs for suicide, and 0.4% died by PAS.

scholarly journals “Unintended consequences”: Can legalizing physician-assisted suicide actually result in improved palliative care practices?

2003 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 213-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM BREITBART
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Hospice Nurses ◽  
The Past ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients ◽  
Death With Dignity Act ◽  
The Impact

In this issue of Palliative & Supportive Care, we are pleased to present recent work from Dr. E.R. Goy et al. (“Oregon hospice nurses and social workers' assessment of physician progress in palliative care over the past 5 years”) regarding their observations of the impact of the legalization of physician-assisted suicide in the state of Oregon. In 1977, Oregon enacted the Death with Dignity Act, which legalized physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients. In the past 5 years, a relatively small number of terminally ill patients in Oregon have requested assisted suicide and, after evaluation, were provided with physician assistance (Ganzini et al., 2002).

scholarly journals Attitudes of Physicians towards Different Types of Euthanasia in Kuwait

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 199-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaikhah Abohaimed ◽  
Basma Matar ◽  
Hussain Al-Shimali ◽  
Khalid Al-Thalji ◽  
Omar Al-Othman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Ministry Of Health ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients ◽  
Specialty Hospitals ◽  
The World ◽  
Different Types

Objective: Although in recent years the world has witnessed great advances in the medical field, much ambiguity still surrounds the issue of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, with increasingly favorable attitudes among physicians around the world. In our study, we aimed to assess the attitudes of physicians in Kuwait towards different types of euthanasia and examine whether physicians’ frequent encounters with terminally ill patients were associated with their approval. Subjects and Methods: We conducted a cross- sectional study on 464 physicians employed in government hospitals (6 general and 3 specialty hospitals). A self-administered questionnaire adapted from previous studies was used. Results: Of the physicians in our study, 43.9% reported that the Ministry of Health should legalize euthanasia under certain restricted conditions. In addition, 29.1% of our population was willing to perform euthanasia. After controlling for several characteristics in logistic regression analysis, approval of passive euthanasia was significantly associated with the following 2 factors: frequent exposure to terminally ill patients (AOR = 2.45) and obtention of the basic medical degree from Asia (AOR = 4.36) or North America/Europe (AOR = 3.24) compared to Kuwait. Male gender was significantly associated with willingness to perform euthanasia. Religion was the major reason for opposing euthanasia. Conclusion: The attitudes of physicians towards euthanasia are diverse, and therefore the Ministry of Health should provide guidelines for physicians dealing with situations where patients or their families request euthanasia.

scholarly journals 道德生死觀下的臨終關懷辨析

1998 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-120
Author(s):  
Ping DONG ◽  
Xiaoyan WANG
Keyword(s):  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Human Action ◽  
The Other ◽  
Eternal Life ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Passive Euthanasia ◽  
Life And Death ◽  
Terminally Ill Patients

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in Chinese; abstract also in English.戀生懼死是人之常情。對於一個瀕臨死亡的人來說，其最大的悲劇莫過於沉浸於對死亡的心理焦慮之中。因此，臨終關懷的重要價值指向應是最大限度地減輕瀕死者的心理痛苦。人生的態度與死亡的觀點息息相闕，瀕死者的悲哀正在於死亡焦慮中的生死困惑。道家文化倡導出生入死、道法自然、無為處世。它以低音悠揚但可震憾現代人心曲的生死吟唱，可以引導臨終者走出死亡焦慮的心理誤區，消解悲苦於無形。安樂死是臨終關懷的應有之意。道家生死論尚自然，法自然，主張人為要與自然之序相協調，不應違反自然而強做妄為。道家反對用過枉之舉去擾亂人的生死變化，認為在死亡來臨時，順其自然，享其“安樂”，尊嚴而歸是不失為善終的。因此，在道家生死觀下，“被動安樂死”（即放棄治療）實為良策，而各種形式的“主動安樂死”（包括醫助致死）均與道家生死論主旨相悖。In confronting death there are differences among people regarding their deep concerns. A survey shows that most Chinese Catholics are worried about what will happen to them after death, whereas most other Chinese are concerned about unfinished life plans, unfulfilled familial obligations, and so on. However, most Western and Chinese authors agree that a great number of terminally ill patients suffer from anxiety, sadness, and depression. And no one denies that unease, puzzle, solitude, and even anger are often experienced by many dying patients. Against this background, this essay argues that the mental sufferings of terminally ill patients can appropriately be healed by taking the Daoist perspective over life and death. Moreover, the essay demonstrates that the Daoist position sheds light on the debate around the issue of passive and active euthanasia.According to the Daoist, the Dao is the way of nature. Nature is a universal process of constant change, binding all things together into a vast and natural harmony. Humans should live freely, naturally, and spontaneously in accord with the Dao. From the Daoist perspective, life and death can be analogized as day and night. They constitute two complementary aspects of nature. Where there is life, there is death. Everything living dies, and death implies new life. In short, just as the ceaseless transformation of four seasons in nature, life and death constitute a balanced knot in the harmonious chain of constant natural changes. Therefore, humans should take death naturally, just as they take life naturally. Humans should not have unnatural worry or anxiety on death in their mind.As there are the natural rules of the Dao, one should follow these rules rather than create artificial human laws. For the Daoist, one artificial expectation for humans is to gain an eternal life without death (here the classical philosophical Daoism remarkably differs from the subsequent religious Daoism which pursues immortality). The other unnatural concerns include mental inseparability from the benefits, utilities, and complicated human relations offered in the living world. The Daoist believes that life and death should be identified as one process and that humans and nature should be taken as a unity.Concerning the issue of euthanasia, we believe that the Dao as following nature is consistent with the position of so-called passive euthanasia. Passive euthanasia allows the terminally ill patient naturally to accept death by foregoing aggressive medical procedures when such procedures cannot do more benefit than harm to the patient. Peaceably accepting death when it naturally comes is the human action performed in accord with the Dao. Launching extra human efforts against natural processes is against the Dao.However, the Daoist cannot advocate any type of active euthanasia or physician assisted suicide. On the one hand, the Daoist admires the man who does not use unnatural instruments to prolong the period of dying in the natural process of death. On the other hand, however, to take active means to kill the patient is to act against the Dao. Indeed, actively to kill the patient is on purpose to destroy the natural mechanism and process of human life. It is to intervene with the spontaneous way of nature in the worst sense. Therefore, the Daoist cannot consider it good to take human life with the help of medical tools.DOWNLOAD HISTORY | This article has been downloaded 44 times in Digital Commons before migrating into this platform.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document