ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF EUTHANASIA RELATED TO NURSING

Ethical implications of euthanasia related to nursing

Ethical implications of euthanasia related to nursing

Introduction

In recent years, the subject of euthanasia has become a hotly debated topic throughout civilized society. With those debates people are lining up on both sides of the discussion. Those who support the idea of legalized euthanasia believe it is an ethical duty to allow terminally ill people to make a choice to end their suffering. Those who are against the practice argue that it is a slippery slope and mankind should not even begin the process of sliding. While both sides continue to debate the positive and negative impact that legalized euthanasia could have on society, terminally ill people hang in the balance, uncertain about their immediate future. While nobody wants to see people die, the fact remains that death is inevitable. Once a person has contracted an illness that there will be no recovery from, only increased suffering and the potential for eventual death, they need to have the right to decide to die now, before their family is financially and emotionally destroyed and before the patient himself suffers needless months of agony. Society has an ethical duty to allow this practice. (Singer, 2006)

It can be regulated to ensure non-abuse and it will provide the ability of suffering patients to have control over their lives, which is a constitutionally protected right to begin with. The death is not caused because of murder, rage, or other criminal intent. Euthanizing animals who suffer with no hope of recovery has been an accepted practice for many years however the legal and nurses and medical community continues to argue over the ethical decision to allow euthanasia for humans. Society has an ethical duty to allow euthanasia. It would allow those who were in too much pain or physically unable to self administer the lethal dose of medication to ask a physician or loved one to assist them without fear that the person assisting might end up charged with murder when it was over. Euthanasia in the United States remains illegal and has been the cause of controversy since the well known cases of Dr. Relentless and excruciating pain can last for months or years as the patient's family endures watching their loved one suffer with no way to alleviate that suffering (Singer, 2006)

Explanation

If their disease or illness is not curable or manageable their quality of life is diminished, sometimes to the point it is not worth living from the patient's perception. ""Self murder," as it was then known (the word suicide wasn't coined until 1642), was deemed so heinous that the body of a suicide victim would be dragged through the streets and his property confiscated to impoverish his heirs (Singer, 2006). People who suffer from debilitating diseases often wish to die for several reasons. Euthanasia allows the patient to control how much devastation he or she causes the family financially as well as how long he or she will suffer physically ...