Assisted Suicide Research Paper
Argument Synthesis Assignment: Should Assisted Suicide be legalized?
Cindy Alley
Stanly Community College
Rodney Alderman
Should Assisted Suicide be legalized?
Do people with incurable diseases or who are suffering great pain have a moral right to take their own lives? The term “assisted suicide” is defined as: the practice of a physician prescribing legal drugs that allow terminally ill patients to end their own lives. In assisted suicide, the physician only provides the drugs, not administer them. I think that assisted suicide should be legalized and it is a humane way to end pain and suffering for someone who is terminally ill because, it offers terminally ill people an opportunity for a peaceful death.
It has been argued that the reason why some terminally ill patients wish to commit suicide is nothing more than melancholia (a feeling of sadness and depression.) Patients suffering terminal illness might tend to be negative, hopeless, and depressed. Many physicians argue that in many cases, dying patients’ thinking is simply occupied by negative reactions to their critical condition. In other words, most of the reasons why terminally ill patients request doctors to assist them in committing suicide might be caused by problems …show more content…
such as hopelessness because, there is no effective treatment, anxiety over doctors’ expensive fees, and regret for their families burden of taking care of them. People who oppose doctor-assisted suicide believe that these patients are much too depressed to make a logical decision. For this reason, they argue that the terminally ill patient needs psychotherapy. More often than not, when the underlying problem is treated patients decide that they don’t want to die after all. That is, terminally ill patients need therapy and counseling.
It may be true that all such requests in which dying patients ask doctors to help them to commit suicide, come from depression, some psychologists claim that some patients will change their minds if they participate in psychotherapy. Terminally patients, are given the right to hasten their deaths and are very determined after psychotherapy. Dying patients want to know how to seek help from a doctor even if they do not choose suicide.
For instance, the case of Brittany Maynard, a 29 year old, attractive spokeswoman who moved from California to Oregon so that she could painlessly end her life, before her aggressive, incurable brain cancer could rob her of cognitive function and impose a painful, seizure-ridden death. Oregon became one of five states to offer what became known as death with dignity, which applies only to patients who are close to death, and Maynard was told she had six months to live. Maynard, was aware of her exact medical condition due to the information from her doctor, she understood the medical treatment risks, benefits and other options, and was mentally component about her choice.
We as Americans have an individual right to make decisions about our life.
That fact is supported by the Amendment XIV. “All persons born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process by law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” Therefore, the Constitution allows every person to have free will. Furthermore, the right of a terminally ill patient given six months or less to choose to kill themselves is not
irrational.
In conclusion, one more law is needed, to help a patient commit suicide. Without the physician-assisted suicide law, dying patients cannot make the decision to ask doctors to help them because doctors will be sued for murder under criminal law. Therefore, physician-assisted suicide should be legalized to protect a terminally ill patient when they need help from the doctors to achieve a peaceful, and meaningful death. All Americans need to reconsider the question of who would be protected by the physician-assisted suicide law.
Works Cited:
Angell, Marcia. "From 'Assisted Suicide ' to 'Death with Dignity '." Washington Post. 02 Nov. 2014: B.3. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
"Death, Dignity and California." Los Angeles Times. 31 Oct. 2014: A.16. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
Lopez, Steve. "Seeking End-of-Life Options." Los Angeles Times. 01 Oct. 2014: p. A.2. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
Melancholia definition: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melancholia
Cindy Alley
Stanly Community College
Rodney Alderman
Should Assisted Suicide be legalized?
Do people with incurable diseases or who are suffering great pain have a moral right to take their own lives? The term “assisted suicide” is defined as: the practice of a physician prescribing legal drugs that allow terminally ill patients to end their own lives. In assisted suicide, the physician only provides the drugs, not administer them. I think that assisted suicide should be legalized and it is a humane way to end pain and suffering for someone who is terminally ill because, it offers terminally ill people an opportunity for a peaceful death.
It has been argued that the reason why some terminally ill patients wish to commit suicide is nothing more than melancholia (a feeling of sadness and depression.) Patients suffering terminal illness might tend to be negative, hopeless, and depressed. Many physicians argue that in many cases, dying patients’ thinking is simply occupied by negative reactions to their critical condition. In other words, most of the reasons why terminally ill patients request doctors to assist them in committing suicide might be caused by problems …show more content…
such as hopelessness because, there is no effective treatment, anxiety over doctors’ expensive fees, and regret for their families burden of taking care of them. People who oppose doctor-assisted suicide believe that these patients are much too depressed to make a logical decision. For this reason, they argue that the terminally ill patient needs psychotherapy. More often than not, when the underlying problem is treated patients decide that they don’t want to die after all. That is, terminally ill patients need therapy and counseling.
It may be true that all such requests in which dying patients ask doctors to help them to commit suicide, come from depression, some psychologists claim that some patients will change their minds if they participate in psychotherapy. Terminally patients, are given the right to hasten their deaths and are very determined after psychotherapy. Dying patients want to know how to seek help from a doctor even if they do not choose suicide.
For instance, the case of Brittany Maynard, a 29 year old, attractive spokeswoman who moved from California to Oregon so that she could painlessly end her life, before her aggressive, incurable brain cancer could rob her of cognitive function and impose a painful, seizure-ridden death. Oregon became one of five states to offer what became known as death with dignity, which applies only to patients who are close to death, and Maynard was told she had six months to live. Maynard, was aware of her exact medical condition due to the information from her doctor, she understood the medical treatment risks, benefits and other options, and was mentally component about her choice.
We as Americans have an individual right to make decisions about our life.
That fact is supported by the Amendment XIV. “All persons born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process by law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” Therefore, the Constitution allows every person to have free will. Furthermore, the right of a terminally ill patient given six months or less to choose to kill themselves is not
irrational.
In conclusion, one more law is needed, to help a patient commit suicide. Without the physician-assisted suicide law, dying patients cannot make the decision to ask doctors to help them because doctors will be sued for murder under criminal law. Therefore, physician-assisted suicide should be legalized to protect a terminally ill patient when they need help from the doctors to achieve a peaceful, and meaningful death. All Americans need to reconsider the question of who would be protected by the physician-assisted suicide law.
Works Cited:
Angell, Marcia. "From 'Assisted Suicide ' to 'Death with Dignity '." Washington Post. 02 Nov. 2014: B.3. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
"Death, Dignity and California." Los Angeles Times. 31 Oct. 2014: A.16. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
Lopez, Steve. "Seeking End-of-Life Options." Los Angeles Times. 01 Oct. 2014: p. A.2. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
Melancholia definition: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melancholia