questions 1-5
Transcribed Image Text from this Question
CHAPTER SOCIAL SUPPORT, TAMILY CAREGIVING, AND END OF LITE 207 POX AS ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS Do People Have a Right to Die? Oregon made history in 1997 by legalizing physician Assisted suicide for terminally ill patients. Under the www.physician may help a person commit suicide if at least two physicians verify that the person has less than six months to live and the patient requests help with suicide at least once in writing and twice ver bally, with at least 15 days between requests. Physician-assisted suicide refers to instances in which, at the request of a terminally ill person, doctor provides the means for that person to end his or her own life (Krug, 1998). The doctor does not actually kill the patient. This is different from euthanasia (also called mercy killing), in which a physician or family member intentionally kills the patient to end his or her suffering. The distinction lies in who does the killing-the patient or another nearly unbearable agony. He recalls. “The pain was excruciating, it was so far beyond any pain that lever knew was possible that I simply could not endure it” (para 21). Cowart supports physician assisted suicide. However, even if a law such as Oregon’s had been in place when his accident occurred, he would not have qualified for lawful physician-assisted sui- elde because he was not dying Cowart is now an attorney in Corpus Christi, Texas, and describes himself as “happier than most people.” But he maintains his conviction that people should not be forced to undergo treatment they do not wish, even if that treatment is needed to keep them alive (Cowart & Burt, 1998). Faced with the same ordeal again, he feels he would wish to die and should be allowed to do so. Cowart’s views are captured in his videos Please Let Me Die and Dax’s Case. On the other side of the issue, some argue that people in intense pain and grief may not see things clearly enough to make life-ending decisions. They point out that Cowart has changed his mind about living with his disabilities. Although he initially felt life would be empty, he now is happy and successful (Cowart & Burt, 1998). Other critics say ill (even ter- minally ill patients may request death for the wrong reasons. They may be afraid about the future, feel out of control and scared, or believe they are a burden to loved ones (Muskin, 1998). For these reasons, they feel It is wrong to help someone commit suicide, even if the person requests it. person The person most commonly associated with physician-assisted suicide was Jack Kevorkian, a physician who, by his own estimate, assisted in the suicides of 130 people. Kevorkian was tried for murder five times, but he was not convicted until the fifth trial, which concluded in April 1999. Kevorkian was declared guilty of second-degree murder by a Michi- ganjury and sentenced to 10 to 25 years in prison The conviction was based on an assisted suicide that Kevorkian videotaped and allowed to be broadcast on 60 Minutes (Willing, 1999). Kevorkian, who was re- leased on parole in 2007 and died in 2011, argued that he was motivated by compassion for people dying slow, painful deaths. His opponents charged that he was a medical “hitman” operating outside the law (Robertson, 1999). Controversy over physician-assisted suicide is likely to continue for quite some time, with people vigorously arguing both sides of the issue. Proponents of physician-assisted suicide include Dax Cowart, who was badly burned in an explosion in 1973 Cowart & Burt, 1998). Two-thirds of Cowart’s body was burned in the accident, and he lost his eyesight and his fingers. For more than a year Cowart begged doctors to let him die. Despite his pleas, medical teams continued to treat his burns. The treatment kept Cowart alive and eventually helped him regain the ability to walk. But during that time he was in What Do You Think? 1. Under what circumstances, if any, do you feel pa- tients should be assisted in killing themselves? 2. Should it make a difference whether a patient is terminally ill or not? 3. If you were in Dax Cowart’s place, do you feel you would want to die? What would you have done if you were Cowart’s caregivers and loved ones? 4. What do you think of the argument that people who are scared and in pain may be not thinking clearly enough to make life-or-death decisions? 5. What do you think of the counterargument-that people should not second-guess the patient’s wishes because they cannot fully understand the extent of his or her personal suffering?
(Visited 2 times, 1 visits today)
