The Pros And Cons Of Assisted Suicide

Imagine a family member being diagnosed with a terminal disease. With only six months to live, the remainder of their life is going to be spent in and out of a hospital. Their health is going to slowly diminish, weight will probably be lost, and hair may fall out. For many people in that situation, there will come a time when enough is enough, and they would rather die with dignity than live a miserable existence. Requesting a lethal medication from a physician to orally ingest in the comforts of their home to fall asleep and die peacefully is far more ideal than the thought of utilizing a do-it-yourself method. All across the United States it should be legal for physicians to prescribe a fatal oral medication to those who request and meet

In the state of Oregon only an adult resident that has the mental capacity to make this type of decision, has been diagnosed with a terminal disease, and has voluntarily expressed their desire to die may submit a written request for medication to end their life in a dignified manner (Oregon Revised Statute, 1994). It should be considered cruel to deny any terminally ill person that opportunity. Some doctors feel assisted suicide is a good option but do not want to write the prescription themselves, so they will send the patient elsewhere. Abandoning their patient because “doctors prize their self-image above the patient’s needs” (Angell, 2014, para. 9). A doctor stating that physician assisted suicide is a good option but refers the patient to a different doctor to prevent their name from being on the prescription is a good foundation for an unethical situation. The legalization of physician assisted suicide across the United States will alleviate all immorality of doctor

A documentary shed a lot of light on the topic of other options. There is a book available titled “Final Exit” authored by Derek Humphry where different methods of suicide are described and illustrated. One of which being a helium method where the patient purchases helium tanks from a party store and utilizes a plastic hood with tubing to gas themselves. Humphry also started a private organization called “The Final Exit Network” that will go to the patient’s house to be by their side while the patient turns the helium tank on, and takes their final breaths (Public Broadcasting Station, 2012). Physician assisted suicide needs to be legalized in order to prevent men like Derek Humphry from getting rich from the desperation of terminally ill