Pros And Cons Of Physician Assisted Suicide

Ryan Vaity

Mrs. Wisner

5/2/23 Not many people know that physician-assisted suicide (PAS) is against the hippocratic oath. PAS is usually for terminally ill people suffering from a fatal disease. It is a form of euthanasia requested by the patient where the physician gives lethal drugs to the patient, causing death. For many reasons, physician-assisted suicide should be legal everywhere. Patients can end their suffering quicker and will not have to go through a long, painful death. It speeds up the process of death, shortening the patients’ suffering. In “Introduction to Physician-Assisted Suicide: At Issue”, Ondrey writes, “Advocates of physician-assisted suicide argue that this progress has not only lengthened the lives of terminally

For this reason, they contend, dying people should have the right to control the timing of their death and should be permitted to obtain a doctor's help in doing so.” Terminally ill people who do not have the option of physician assisted suicide have to go through an extremely painful and slow death. They should have the right to control when they can be put out of their misery. Nobody should be forced to suffer, and PAS is a relief from suffering. Accoding to “Physician-Assisted Suicide Should Be Legalized”, “The physician's obligations are many but, when cure is impossible and palliation has failed to achieve its objectives, there is always a residual obligation to relieve suffering. Ultimately, if the physician has exhausted all reasonable palliative measures, it is the patient—and only the patient—who can judge whether death is harmful or a good to be sought,” (Rogatz). If nothing that a physician tries to save and help their patient

Patients might make decisions quickly, without fully thinking and considering the consequences and other options that may be available. In the article “Legalizing Physician-Assisted Suicide Would Lead to Patient Abuse”, Kevin Irvine states that, “If assisted suicide were legal, for every person who will make a careful, reasoned decision to end his or her life, there will likely be those who act in haste, under pressure…” While some patients may think about it, some patients may hastily make the decision without fully thinking about what they are doing. Patients may not think about what is best for them, but what is best for others, and may make the decision thinking that their life is not worth anything. They may not realize that other options are