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Death With Dignity Essay

1674 Words7 Pages

Death with Dignity
Physician-assisted death, also known as PAD, is a highly controversial topic debated in legal, philosophical, religious, and medical fields today. PAD is when a physician provides a terminally ill patient with a lethal dose of medication while knowing that the intent of the patient is to end his or her own life (Torr 122). Such patient then can make the decision of when and where to take the prescription to end his or her own life. Currently, a person would only be eligible for PAD if their terminal illness would lead to the patient’s death in under six months (Weir 101). While the debate on physician-assisted death is often seen as an ethical dilemma, many argue it is a decision that should be made by the individual and …show more content…

Clearly, it would be unfair to deny anyone this right on such circumstantial details as whether they require life support or not. This becomes exceedingly evident when one takes into consideration that it is very likely a patient’s illness will eventually cause them to be placed on life support. It is also likely that the patient would be unconscious when placed on life support and would be unable to make the decision to have it removed.
Those in support of physician-assisted death also argue that denying a patient the right to choose his or her own death over suffering is a limitation of personal liberty. In 1996, it was ruled in a state court that, ”terminally ill patients who are mentally competent have a constitutional right to determine the time and manner of their death.” (Peck 207). This “constitutional right” to determine one’s own death should not be dictated by another party’s religious or spiritual views on the sanctity of life. Sadly, many people suffering from terminal illnesses are being denied the right to end their pain by other’s personal beliefs on the value of

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