Physician Assisted Suicide

1. Physician Assisted Suicide Stephanie Manthe Philosophy 72

2. What is Physician Assisted Suicide? • According to the University of Washington School of Medicine, “physician assisted suicide generally refers to a practice in which the physician provides a patient with a lethal dose of medication, upon the patient's request, which the patient intends to use to end his or her own life.” http://depts.washington.edu

3. Is this the Same as Euthanasia? • No. Euthanasia involves the physician administering the lethal substance to the person directly, thereby ending the persons life.

4. Is Physician Assisted Suicide Legal? According to assistedsuicide.org: “The only four places that today openly and legally, authorize active assistance in dying of patients, are: • Oregon (since l997, physician-assisted suicide only); • Switzerland (1941, physician and non-physician assisted suicide only); • Belgium (2002, permits 'euthanasia' but does not define the method; • Netherlands (voluntary euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide lawful since April 2002 but permitted by the courts since l984).”

5. U.S. Supreme Court Position • In 1997 a U.S. Supreme Court ruling held that Persons who are Physically unable to kill themselves but want to do so have no Constitutional right to end their lives. http://www.nndb.com

6. Methods • Method generally involves a lethal dose of medication. • This could include increasing the morphine a patient receives or a combination of drugs. • Methods of physician assisted suicide are meant to provide a peaceful death so they do not involve violent methods. www.assistedsuicide.org

7. An Atheist physician from Pontiac, MI known as “Dr. Death” for assisting in approximately 130 physician assisted suicides since 1990 Served eight years of a 10-25 year prison sentence for assisted suicides Has not changed his position since his release from prison. http://www.nndb.com Dr. Jack Kevorkian

8. Scenario • A 56-year old married man with five children and no health insurance. • After a heart attack, he is diagnosed with stomach cancer. His heart is only operating at 30-percent capacity. Upon surgery, it is discovered cancer has spread to numerous organs and lymph nodes. • Patient is classified as terminal, with approximately three to six months to live.

9. Scenario Continued • Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy are not options. • Medication for severe pain is necessary, however is causing consistent nausea. • The patient is unable to eat due to ulcerations in the stomach and is fed via a feeding tube directly into the intestines.

10. Question? • Does this person’s terminal medical condition make physician assisted suicide a morally correct option?

11. Arguments in favor of physician assisted suicide in this situation • Prevents the prolonged suffering of the patient who will eventually die anyway • The family will not have to bear the burden of medical bills. • The emotional pain of knowing that you have to live out a long painful death can be devastating • The quality of life is taken away through suffering • A peaceful death is better than a painful one

12. Arguments against physician assisted suicide in this situation • The man is still functioning mentally and emotionally • His life is sacred because it was given by God and therefore he doesn’t have the right to end it • His family may experience guilt for allowing his death to occur by his own hand instead of naturally. • The purpose of a physician assisted suicide contradicts the moral obligation of a physician to preserve life

13. Kant on Physician Assisted Suicide • An important part of Kant’s philosophy is that he bases morality on reason rather than consequence. • A physician assisting a patient in suicide would not be morally right in Kant’s view because it is being done to relive the suffering of the patient which is a consequence of the action.

14. Kant • In Kant’s perspective of Categorical Imperative number one you should only act in ways that can be universalized. • For this reason, physician assisted suicide is contrary to the categorical imperative because if it were morally right to help one suffering patient commit suicide then it would have to be right to help everyone commit suicide. This contradicts everyone’s moral duty to live. www.associatedcontent.com

15. A Utilitarian on Physician Assisted Suicide • Utilitarianism is based on the principle that if an action benefits the group more than the individual then it is morally good. • In this particular scenario the physician who is assisting with the suicide is benefiting the larger group (the patient and his family) rather than himself (the individual). • The patient will benefit by an end to his suffering and the family will benefit from knowing he is no longer suffering and they will also be relived of the financial burden. www.associatedcontent.com

16. My Personal Opinion • I personally believe in this situation physician assisted suicide is morally wrong. • I base my opinion on the Divine Command Theory which is based on the philosophy that moral right and wrong is based on God’s commandments rather than human opinions or standards set by society. • God created life and has the ability to take it away at any time. His commandment simply states “Thou shall not kill”. • Therefore Physician assisted suicide would be contrary to the Divine Command Theory.

17. Questions to Think About • Do you believe physician assisted suicide in this situation is morally right? Why or why not? • Would a terminally ill patient be competent in making a life and death decision? • What if the patient was physically unable to administer the lethal drug to himself correctly and did not die but instead worsened his condition (i.e., brain damage)? • Is their any circumstance where physician assisted suicide could be justified?

18. Works cited • Baddock, Clarence H. "Physician Assisted Suicide." Ethics in Medicine University of Washington. University of Washington, 1998. Web. 21 Oct. 2009. <http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pas.html>. • Humphrey, Derek. "Assisted Suicide Around the World." Assised Suicide. 1 Mar. 2005. Web. 21 Oct. 2009. <http://assistedsuicide.org/suicide_laws.html>. • "Jack Kevorkian." NNDB: Tracking the entire world. Soylent Communicatons, 2009. Web. 21 Oct. 2009. <http://www.nndb.com>. • Maccarelli, Sarah. "Kantian Ethics and Suicide." Associated Content - associatedcontent.com. 31 Jan. 2006. Web. 21 Oct. 2009. <http://associatedcontent.com>.