The Debate on Physical-Assisted Suicide - Essay Sample

Introduction

Physical-assisted suicide is an act where physicians offer potentially lethal medication to a terminally ill individual or a patient who is suffering, and at his request, he or she has a choice in ending his or her own life. In most states, physical-assisted suicide is considered illegal, and there exists a recent commotion of legal activity (Battin, Rhodes, & Silvers, 2015). The practice was legalized in Oregon in the year 1995. In the paper, the paper seeks to discuss various arguments related to Physical-assisted suicide.

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Counter Argument

The study on physician-assisted suicide in Oregon and Netherlands gives rise to the counter-argument that legalizing physical-assisted suicide may cause more deaths among the most susceptible group of persons like the disabled. Data analyzed from these two regions where assisted suicide was legalized tracked ten vulnerable groups (Frost, Sinha & Gilbert, 2014). These groups include; mentally ill, poor, women, physically disabled, elderly, chronically ill, ethnic minorities and others. Critics of physician-assisted suicide argue that persons who lie in the category mentioned above might be influenced to end their lives through the process.

Advocates for Physical-Assisted Suicide

Furthermore, several people advocate strongly for physical-assisted suicide, with a majority being physicians. According to research, the number of physicians who are in support of assisted deaths has generally increased over time (Quill, Arnold & Youngner, 2017). Over 16% of 300 physicians responded to the "Medscape Medical News Poll" claimed that they undertake assisted deaths in states that have legalized assisted deaths. Alike, polls have shown that a large number of Americans are in favor of Physical-assisted suicide (Radbruch et al., 2016). Some of the interest parties in physician-assisted suicide are non-governmental organizations. They are also referred to as the "Right to Die Organizations," and most of the assisted suicides in Oregon and Switzerland are facilitated through these private non-profit institutions.

Interested Parties in the Legalization of Assisted Suicide

Similarly, the other category of interested persons is the patients themselves. Some patients, as well as family members, of those who suffer from chronic diseases, often find physician-assisted suicide as the only way out of the pain their loved ones face (Frost, Sinha & Gilbert, 2014). Also, some advanced arguments by these supporters of physician-assisted suicide claim that; the procedure helps to prevent needless suffering and pain to terminally ill patients.

Information on Physical-Assisted Suicide

There are various types of information transferred regarding physical-assisted suicide. First is that the procedure can only occur when the medical physician facilitates the patient's death by offering necessary means to enable the patient to undertake the life-ending act. Second, the American Medical Association opposes assisted suicide, and it argues that the act is incompatible with the roles of a physician, as it would be difficult to control and it would be a societal risk. Third, the complications that occur during the process are never disclosed (Emanuel, Onwuteaka-Philipsen, Urwin, & Cohen, 2016). The key reason for this is the fact that doctors are usually absent when the patients consume the lethal dose. Finally, according to the "Gallup survey" 68 percent of doctors say that it should be legalized and this has made the support of assisted deaths to increase with nearly 20 points since 2013 (Battin et al., 2015).

Conflict Between Assisted Suicide With Personal Observation and Background Information

The act of making Physician-assisted suicide legal contradicts with my observation and background information. Having met with some people who have chronic illnesses, I have heard most of them say "They wish they just died." Legalizing the act may give more patients a shortcut to death, and this would increase the number of deaths in general (Quill, Arnold & Youngner, 2017).

Today, six states in America have embraced passing with Dignity Acts. The laws enable the decision to choose death at a poor state of health; they have the chance to pick when and how they want to die. The state of Montana does not have enactment around death with nobility. In any case, end-of-life alternatives are lawful in the state because of a Supreme Court Ruling that permitted it. Euthanasia acts come from one fundamental thought that at death's door individuals reserve the privilege to take their lives on their terms. Advocates accept that people confronting terminal ailments ought to have the option to pick how much enduring they suffer without the impedance of government or religious pioneers (Frost, Sinha & Gilbert, 2014). It is basic to comprehend that not simply anybody can practice their privilege under helped suicide laws. One must be a rationally equipped grown-up who can affirm a terminal finding with a half year or less to live. When this necessity is met, one can intentionally demand a remedy that will take their life. The thought behind helped suicide is that it gives them at death's door control, poise, and genuine feelings of serenity during their last days

Rhetoric Used With Respect to Physician-Assisted Suicide

The rhetoric used concerning assisted suicide is that most Americans are advocating for physician-assisted suicide, but the legislation, on the other hand, fails to reflect the public opinion. Additionally, the results from "NPR-Truven Health Analytics" show that the number of people in favor of the claim has remained unchanged over the years. Religious reasons make physical-assisted suicide a controversial topic. Christians base their opposition to one of the Ten Commandments, "Thou shall not kill." Muslims, on the other hand, believe that "Allah has the right to end life." Thus, such two religions have a strong reverence for life.

Scientific Findings

There exist various scientific findings on physician-assisted suicide. Assisted suicide is seen as a way of encouraging suicide, and in most scenarios, it is categorized as manslaughter. Correspondingly, the study conducted by Massachusetts Medical Society shows that assisting suicide affects physicians (Quill, Arnold & Youngner, 2017). Hence, most physicians are painfully conflicted with regards to undertaking the procedure to end one's life.

Probability Assessment

Moreover, the best way to assess the probability of physician-assisted suicide being legalized is by taking into consideration the arguments of the proposers and those opposing the act. Likewise, going through research that has been done on the matter can also help assess the probability of the claim (Emanuel, 2017). Doctors who help patients by recommending or overseeing deadly portions of drugs could be believed to disregard commitments and legitimate lead spread out in the Hippocratic Oath. On the off chance that an individual is told they have a terminal illness and neglect to get a subsequent conclusion before executing their entitlement to pass on, they could have passed up different medicines or finding a misdiagnosis.

Conclusion

In conclusion, physician-assisted suicide in my point of view should not be legalized. Life is a gift from God, and no man is allowed to take it away, even with his or her consent. Furthermore, if assisted suicide is legalized, the death rates would rise; this is because many people would prefer to die through lethal injection rather than to live with pain. Life is so precious and must be respected and safeguarded at all costs.

References

Battin, M. P., Rhodes, R., & Silvers, A. (2015). Physician-assisted suicide: expanding the debate. Routledge.controls". Current Oncology, 18(2), e38-e45. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3070710/.

Emanuel, E. (2017). Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide: focus on the data. The Medical Journal of Australia, 206(8), 1-2e1.Retrieved from https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2017/207/10/euthanasia-and-physician-assisted-suicide-focus-data

Emanuel, E. J., Onwuteaka-Philipsen, B. D., Urwin, J. W., & Cohen, J. (2016). Attitudes and practices of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Jama, 316(1), 79-90. Retrieved from https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2532018

Frost, T. D., Sinha, D., & Gilbert, B. J. (2014). "Should assisted dying be legalised?"

Pereira, J. (2011). "Legalizing euthanasia or assisted suicide: the illusion of safeguards and

Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine Journal 9(3). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3901751/.

Quill, T. E., Arnold, R. M., & Youngner, S. J. (2017). Physician-Assisted Suicide: Finding a Path Forward in a Changing Legal Environment. Annals of internal medicine, 167(8), 597-598. Retrieved from https://annals.org/aim/article-abstract/2654459

Radbruch, L., Leget, C., Bahr, P., Muller-Busch, C., Ellershaw, J., De Conno, F., & board members of the EAPC. (2016). Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide: a white paper from the European Association for Palliative Care. Palliative Medicine, 30(2), 104-116. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0269216315616524