Physician Assisted Suicide
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Physician Assisted Suicide
PHI103: Informal Logic
Instructor Carol Parker
September 23, 2013
One of the most controversial issues over decades and is still ongoing in todays society, is should physician assisted suicide be legal? Many feel that it is wrong for patients to ask their health care providers to assist in ending their life, regardless of their health condition. While, others feel that a terminally ill patient should have the right to ask for assistance to end their life. However, this topic brings up many ethical questions. My purpose for writing this paper is to describe disadvantages and benefits of physician assisted suicide, and to discuss ethical reason behind each point.
Physician assisted suicide was legalized in Oregon in the mid 90’s and many years of data that has been documented regarding this practice. It was also legalized by referendum in the state of Washington in 2008 and it currently permitted in Montana since 2009. Most often when one thinks about suicide, we think of a person taking his or her own life. If a patient is physically capable of taking their own life, they may do so. “In assisted suicide, someone makes a means of death available, but does not act as a direct agent of death” (2001).
In my research I found many arguments that are against physician assisted suicide. One that seems to be obvious is that of health care providers. The American Medical Association (AMA) speaks out on this topic. The American Medical Association says that physician assisted suicide goes against the role of a health care providers being healers. Physicians take the Hippocratic Oath which is an oath to never cause harm to their patients. Physician assisted suicide breaks the trust that patients have, that their physician would never harm them. Another argument this that physician assisted suicide could lead to involuntary euthanasia. Therefore, supporters of this theory think...
PHI103: Informal Logic
Instructor Carol Parker
September 23, 2013
One of the most controversial issues over decades and is still ongoing in todays society, is should physician assisted suicide be legal? Many feel that it is wrong for patients to ask their health care providers to assist in ending their life, regardless of their health condition. While, others feel that a terminally ill patient should have the right to ask for assistance to end their life. However, this topic brings up many ethical questions. My purpose for writing this paper is to describe disadvantages and benefits of physician assisted suicide, and to discuss ethical reason behind each point.
Physician assisted suicide was legalized in Oregon in the mid 90’s and many years of data that has been documented regarding this practice. It was also legalized by referendum in the state of Washington in 2008 and it currently permitted in Montana since 2009. Most often when one thinks about suicide, we think of a person taking his or her own life. If a patient is physically capable of taking their own life, they may do so. “In assisted suicide, someone makes a means of death available, but does not act as a direct agent of death” (2001).
In my research I found many arguments that are against physician assisted suicide. One that seems to be obvious is that of health care providers. The American Medical Association (AMA) speaks out on this topic. The American Medical Association says that physician assisted suicide goes against the role of a health care providers being healers. Physicians take the Hippocratic Oath which is an oath to never cause harm to their patients. Physician assisted suicide breaks the trust that patients have, that their physician would never harm them. Another argument this that physician assisted suicide could lead to involuntary euthanasia. Therefore, supporters of this theory think...