jeudi 14 mai 2015

Some Of The Most Important Death With Dignity Pros And Cons

By Tammie Caldwell


Euthanasia is a controversial topic in the media at this time. It is subject to extreme argument, which is then presented by the media. Sometimes, individual cases go to court, where a medical practitioner is typically charged with something. This issue requires proper attention, and for more than one reason. Part of understanding it is knowing the death with dignity pros and cons.

Modern medicine has made the treatment of terminally ill patients possible to such a degree that they sometimes spend months or even years in prolonged care. Previously, these patients would not have survived their conditions for that span of time. Yet they remain alive until, eventually, their death is imminent and no treatment can delay it. At such times, they may consider euthanasia, or mercy killing/death.

Soldiers have been known to euthanase the terminally wounded after a battle. Ending the suffering of the terminally diseased or injured is not a new approach in the human response to these situations, and has been practised through the ages. Some patients even unilaterally terminate their treatment and allow themselves to die or they commit suicide. None of this is surprising or new in human experience.

Yet the legal systems of many countries do not permit this activity on the part of doctors. The implications are obvious. Doctors should not be allowed to terminate their patients, since this may lead to the murder of those who otherwise had a chance of recovery. This is why doctors are sometimes prosecuted for what was supposed to be a mercy killing or apply for permission to end the life of a specific patient.

One notable recent case concerned Dr Harold Shipman, in the UK. He secretly killed 285 aged patients, without their (or anyone else's) knowledge or even consent. His method was poisoning. Legalizing euthanasia may then encourage medical practitioners with such designs to murder their patients. Shipman was sentenced to jail, where he ended his own life on his 58th birthday.

In the rare cases of euthanasia that do occur, lethal injection is a common method. It may be familiar to the reader since it is also used to execute prisoners given the death penalty. What people should understand about this method is that the chemicals used should only be administered by a medical practitioner. They are not sold to the public and some of them are actually medicines if used in lower dosages.

The legal system does not allow euthanasia, yet some patients may experience such intense pain or have such debilitating symptoms that they no longer see the use of further palliative treatment. They then try extreme measures, such as narcotics, or even commit suicide in the more usual ways. Those who are unable to end their own lives, however, may request that their doctor do so.

Medical practitioners should obviously be regulated by official legislation. At the same time, however, their terminal patients request euthanasia or commit suicide. The debate around this issue continues unabated, but people should always remember that the immense pain, debilitation and suffering of terminal patients is sometimes a reason to give them more say in the matter.




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