Arguments Against Physician Assisted Suicide

Physician-Assisted Suicide
The question about physician-assisted suicide in many societies around the world remains difficult, except some European countries such as Belgium and the Netherlands, and some states in USA - Oregon, Washington and Montana where this former restriction was legalized. Nowadays, other countries and the rest of states in the U.S. facing dilemma rather to leave PAS illegal, or change existing law into legal practice. In “Introduction” of the book Ethical Issues in Modern Medicine by Bonnie Steinbock, John D. Arras, and Alex John London, a fictional Dr. Deborah Brody raises the problem of her ill patient, Mr. Lasken, who asked the doctor to help him relieve his sufferings through a lethal injection. Dr. Brody opened
Utilitarianists, Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, said, “The right action is the one that, on balance, promotes the most happiness, or the greatest amount of pleasure over pain” (Steinbock p.9), and “Man desires as much happiness and as little suffering as possible, and nothing else is worth desiring” (Fenigsen p.244). I can’t say that I always agree with utilitarianism, but in this case of PAS I convinced that doctors have to satisfy the small amount of terminally ill patients what is very popular in this ethical theory. This way of thinking might be criticized by Kantianism which advocates promoting the happiness not only for few people. Some cases from countries and a few states in USA, where PAS is legal, show that it might happen that satisfying some people doctors could abuse others, but it’s not too much occasions, because the number of people who ask for help is still so small, and the affairs of abuse are rare. For example, the statistic in 2010 in Oregon shows that 96 Oregonians asked their doctors to prescribe a deadly barbiturate which they could ingest causing their own death; 65 of them went ahead and did so. This mode of dying accounts for just 0.2% of death in Oregon (Brennan p. 18). Also the request of PAS was from really terminally ill patients. In the Netherlands and Belgium the large majority of the patient suffered from
In the Netherlands, medicine is for free and the relationship between a doctor and patient is so tight that is not practiced in the U.S. But, some options have to be similar with Belgium and the Netherlands. There are the patient’s request must be voluntary and well considered; repeated, and may not be the result of external pressure. The patient must be in a medically hopeless situation of constant and unbearable physical or psychological suffering that cannot be alleviated. The physician must terminate life in a medically and technically appropriate way. For all patients, the treating physician must consult a second independent physician before proceeding (Rurup p. 44).
I took the position of favor to practice and legalize PAS, because many years ago I experience this situation in my household. My grandmother suffered from a brain cancer. Her sufferings couldn’t be relieved enough. Believe me, it is terrible situation when you see a dear person in pain and you can’t help. She wanted to die because it was really hopeless situation with no future and very painful sufferings. Everyone wanted to help, but on the other hand the help was impossible. That’s why I assert that PAS has to be legalized as help, but not the death as many people