Voluntary Euthanasia
St Peter’s Catholic College, Tuggerah
Task: Catholic Ethical Teaching
Ethan Fortis
1. Name the Issue (I mark) Euthanasia |
2. Outline the ethical issue (5 marks) Euthanasia, also sometimes known as mercy killing, is the act of painlessly allowing death. This is especially used to relieve the pain of an animal or person suffering incurable and/or severely painful disease. There are 4 different types of euthanasia; these include voluntary, non-voluntary, involuntary, and passive & active euthanasia. Voluntary euthanasia is conducted with the consent of the patient, non-voluntary occurs when the patient is unable to give or deny consent, and involuntary happens when euthanasia is performed without the patient’s consent. All of the above varieties of euthanasia can be divided into passive & active euthanasia. Passive euthanasia refers to the withdrawal of medical treatment with the deliberate intention of hurrying along a terminally ill patient. Active euthanasia occurs when a lethal dose of medication is given to the patient to deliberately take their life. |
3. Provide and briefly explain the main arguments for and against the issue (6marks) There are a number of arguments supporting the use of euthanasia in society. An example of these includes that euthanasia quickly and humanely ends a patient’s life who’s suffering severe and unbearable pain, allowing them to die in dignity. People that are terminally ill don’t deserve to endure the immense pain they go through if they have personally chose to undergo euthanasia.Another argument for euthanasia is the fact that it shortens the grief and suffering the patient’s loved ones go through day after day of the inevitable death dragging on. Loved ones and family of someone who is terminally ill go through a huge amount of psychological issues knowing they aren’t able do to anything about it while a person in their life is slowly and painfully dying. Euthanasia allows these people to
Task: Catholic Ethical Teaching
Ethan Fortis
1. Name the Issue (I mark) Euthanasia |
2. Outline the ethical issue (5 marks) Euthanasia, also sometimes known as mercy killing, is the act of painlessly allowing death. This is especially used to relieve the pain of an animal or person suffering incurable and/or severely painful disease. There are 4 different types of euthanasia; these include voluntary, non-voluntary, involuntary, and passive & active euthanasia. Voluntary euthanasia is conducted with the consent of the patient, non-voluntary occurs when the patient is unable to give or deny consent, and involuntary happens when euthanasia is performed without the patient’s consent. All of the above varieties of euthanasia can be divided into passive & active euthanasia. Passive euthanasia refers to the withdrawal of medical treatment with the deliberate intention of hurrying along a terminally ill patient. Active euthanasia occurs when a lethal dose of medication is given to the patient to deliberately take their life. |
3. Provide and briefly explain the main arguments for and against the issue (6marks) There are a number of arguments supporting the use of euthanasia in society. An example of these includes that euthanasia quickly and humanely ends a patient’s life who’s suffering severe and unbearable pain, allowing them to die in dignity. People that are terminally ill don’t deserve to endure the immense pain they go through if they have personally chose to undergo euthanasia.Another argument for euthanasia is the fact that it shortens the grief and suffering the patient’s loved ones go through day after day of the inevitable death dragging on. Loved ones and family of someone who is terminally ill go through a huge amount of psychological issues knowing they aren’t able do to anything about it while a person in their life is slowly and painfully dying. Euthanasia allows these people to