Discussion: Week7 Course Project Argumentative

Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

Elizabeth Robinson

Critical Reasoning- Morriss

Chamberlain University

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Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

1 Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

Euthanasia is a controversial topic that has had several authors engaged in intense debate.

Euthanasia can be defined as the painless killing of a person who is terminally ill. It derives from

the Greek word “Euthanatos'' which means mercy killing. Euthanasia has bee termed many

things which include, but are not limited to physician- assisted suicide (PAS), physician- assisted

suicide and euthanasia (PAS/E), voluntary euthanasia (VE), and non- voluntary euthanasia

(NVE). For this paper we will be using the term voluntary euthanasia (VE) and discuss its pros

and cons.

Many providers stand on different sides of the spectrum regarding VE and how it not

only affects the patients but the families and healthcare staff involved as well. I propose that

some form VE should be supported based on the ethical principle of autonomy that allows the

patient to make their own decision regarding their care with the stipulations that the patient must

be terminally ill, sign an informed consent, and a psychological assessment for reassurance that

their aren’t emotional factors interfering with the patient’s sound judgement. VE should be seen

on the same basis as practices used for life sustaining measures.

Pros of Euthanasia

Autonomy refers to a patient’s right to make their own decisions regarding their

healthcare. Providers (doctors) are often unaware of the intense pain the patients experience as in

many settings, providers spend a limited amount of time with one patient due to a multitude of

patients. According to Goligher et al., “We know that for many dying patients, the motivation for

requesting VE may not be physical suffering but ‘loss of control,’ ‘pointless suffering,’

‘deterioration or loss of dignity,’ and ‘weakness or tiredness’, for which there are no effective

medical treatments,” (2017). We may not see death as something to be celebrated, but for a

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Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

2 patient who knows death is iminent, it may be the only thing left that they have control over. A

quickening of death would ultimately end the patient’s suffering and allow them to make one last

decision and keep a sense of dignity. This also relieves some stress on the family as they will not

have the weight of making pertinent decisions regarding the patient’s care.

Providers are allowed to practice withholding or withdrawing life sustaining therapy

(WWLST) which are no ethically different than performing voluntary euthanasia. End- of- life

care is an important aspect and WWLST has the tendency to prolong the dying process without

reversing the underlying medical condition. VE is an imperative relief of patient suffering and

allows the patient to stay in control of their treatment. Keeping a patient alive using life-

sustaining measures is costly for the hospital and can be a financial burden on the family once

the patient is deceased causing more stress in concurrence of the grieving of their loved one. Life

support itself can cost up to four thousand dollars and this is not to include life- sustaining

medications if the patient’s health begins to rapidly decline

Healthcare professionals should feel a moral obligation to stop their patient from

suffering. According to Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, “Nurses "see it all", and spend more

time with the patient and families than other health professionals,” (2016). There is a relationship

that is built during that time of care and it can be difficult to witness the pain many terminally ill

patients experience. Healthcare professionals are morally obligated to respect their patients’

wishes, provide them with comfort, and not be judgemental regarding the patient and their

decisions.

Cons of Euthanasia

Though it may be the patient’s right to make decisions regarding their healthcare, it

would be necessary to verify if the patient has the decisional capacity to make the decision for

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Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

3 voluntary euthanasia. Decisional capacity refers to the mental or cognitive ability to understand

the nature and effects of one’s acts, (Kissane & Mendz, 2020). Oftentimes, other factors can

cloud the judgment especially in the case of a terminal diagnosis, which can lead to

demoralization, depression, death anxiety, and feelings of hopelessness. Kissane and Mendz

state, “These factors in 30%-50% of the terminally ill, and 13%-18% of the elderly,” (2020).

These factors can cause stress and be influential in the decision making process and impairs

patient judgement.

Providers who participate in practicing WWLST are simply allowing death to take its

natural course. Participating in voluntary euthanasia violates the ethical prinicple of maleficence

which is to do no harm. Life is sacred and should be seen as such which is why murderers that

are convicted spend the rest of their lives in jail.

Many providers are not willing to compromise their moral beliefs for patients who wish

to participate in voluntary euthanasia. That is a memory that is unyielding to live with. Many are

not willing to take ethical responsibility. When a patient is deemed terminally ill and treatment is

no longer an option, death becomes a natural process. Regardless of the fact that determines the

patient’s life by his active engagement, the provider’s act cannot be considered as a direct cause

of the patient’s death, (Banovic et al., 2017).

Legalization of voluntary euthanasia will cause additional concerns that may cause

potential patient harm. Research has shown that after publicized suicides, there is a broad spike

in suicides in areas where the suicide had bee televised. According to Dugdale et al., “This was

particularly true for individuals whose demographic profiles were similar to those of the person

who died by suicide,” (2019). Though this research project did not focus on voluntary

euthanasia, it is possible that it could cause some type of influence on patients who are already

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Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

4 experiencing demoralization and associated factors.

Summary and Conclusion

Voluntary euthanasia is a contentious topic that can be argued from several different

points of view. Those that believe voluntary euthanasia should be legalized believe it is the

patient’s right to be able to choose the way and when they should die. It is imperative and cost

efficient for the hospitals and the family. It allows the patient to keep their dignity and relieves

some stress the family may have when trying to make the right decisions regarding their ill

family member’s care. Voluntary euthanasia relieves patient suffering and it should be an

obligation of health care professionals to want to relieve their patient of chronic pain. WWLST is

not different than voluntary euthanasia and doctors are allowed to practice this in every state and

country. Many nurses also agree that voluntary euthanasia should be legalized as they spend the

most amount of time with terminally ill patients and witness the immense ammounts of suffering

they experience.

On the contrary, voluntary euthanasia makes many providers uncomfotable and many are

not willing to risk their own moral beliefs. Providers practice WWLST with the intent to prolong

life and voluntary euthanasia is intentionally taking a life and should be seen as murder. Life is a

precious gift and should be seen as such and many providers are not willing to live with the

ethical responsibility of killing patients even with consent. Legalizing voluntary euthanasia could

cause a spike in suicides known as suicide contagion in people with similar demographics.

There are many emotional factors that can interfere with the patient’s decisional capacity. Lastly,

legalizing voluntary euthanasia will not allow the patient to properly experience the dying

process, which usually entails accepting their diagnosis and makind amends with loved ones.

References

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Argumentative Paper: Euthanasia

5 Banović, B., Turanjanin, V., & Miloradović, A. (2017). An Ethical Review of Euthanasia

and Physician-assisted Suicide. Iranian journal of public health, 46(2), 173–179.

Dugdale, L. S., Lerner, B. H., & Callahan, D. (2019). Pros and Cons of Physician Aid in

Dying. The Yale journal of biology and medicine, 92(4), 747–750.

Goligher, E. C., Ely, E. W., Sulmasy, D. P., Bakker, J., Raphael, J., Volandes, A. E., Patel,

B. M., Payne, K., Hosie, A., Churchill, L., White, D. B., & Downar, J. (2017). Physician-

Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in the ICU: A Dialogue on Core Ethical Issues. Critical

care medicine, 45(2), 149–155.

Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand. (2016). Austailan nurses’ union backs euthanasia. New

zealand nurses organization. 22(10): 9-9. (1/3p)

Kissane, D.W. & Mendz G.L. (2020). Agency, autonomy, and euthanasia. Journal of law,

medicine & ethics, 48(3), 555-564.

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