Dying a death with dignity is a wish for all of us. Watching a loved one go through a slow and agonizing death is awful. When suffering from a terminal illness, many patients will lie in a bed and wait to die. Wouldn't it be nice if physician- assisted suicide or euthanasia could be a solution? Why force a patient with little time remaining who is in great pain to suffer the remaining time of their life? Physician-assisted suicide is "when a doctor intentionally helps a person to commit suicide by providing drugs for self-administration, at that person's voluntary and competent request" (p12) Euthanasia, which means "easy death" in Greek, is "when a doctor intentionally kills a person by administering drugs" (p11). Some will say that everyone needs to die a death on their own, and dying on purpose is wrong no matter what the circumstance is. Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia should be legal under certain circumstances. These options will help patients that are terminally ill be relieved of their pain if this is their wish. .
Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia should be legal under certain circumstances. Guidelines are needed to ensure that it is a last resort and that the proper choice is being made that it is right for that patient. The safeguards that should be put in place are similar to the ones that are established in Oregon, which rule out people who are depressed or suicidal. The Assisted Dying Bill states that for patients to be considered to receive physician-assisted suicide, they must be adults that are terminally ill that can make voluntary and informed decisions. Second, two doctors must establish that the patient has less than six months to live and that the request is well-informed, persistent, and voluntary. Third, the patient is to be referred to a specialist consultant if mental competency is in doubt. Fourth, the patient must be fully informed of all other options that are available.
