People are encouraged to live their lives to the fullest and enjoy every moment possible, yet as the aging process continues and in many instances, circumstances arise in which an individual is still living, yet has a highly diminished quality of life, people are discouraged from contemplating death. Certain conditions, such as paralysis, have the potential to render a fully cognizant individual trapped in a motionless world. When contemplating the reality that legally, there are situations every day in which someone somewhere ‘plays God’ and makes the decision to not attempt to extend the life of a child who was born prematurely or has to make a potentially life-ending decision for another individual, the question of why is a reasonably intelligent adult incapable of making end-of-life decisions for themselves?
In many ways, physician-assisted suicide is similar to the abortion issue in which some individuals believe the right to have control over their own body should be theirs and theirs alone while some dissenters believe it is an immoral option. However, at this time in the United States, women have the right to obtain abortions if they decide it is the best option for their individual circumstances. Following this premise, barring death from an accident or sudden illness, the right to die should be the decision of the individual, even if it includes assistance provided by another individual, such as their personal physician within certain parameters as certain circumstances would have to be observed. Physician-assisted suicide could not be used as a solution for chronic conditions such as clinical depression and would be heavily mandated through government oversight.
Use your promo and get a custom paper on
"Physician Assisted Suicide Essay".
Every day, life-ending decisions are made by physicians and other members of the medical profession. These decisions are considered to be made with compassion in mind. If an individual of sound mind is denied the ability to make the decision concerning the circumstances under which to end one’s life, compassion is denied. For an individual suffering from complete paralysis, interaction with the surrounding world might be limited to the ability to respond to certain stimuli, primarily through that of questions requiring simple responses that might be provided through blinking the eyes, might lead the individual to decide they want to end their life on their terms. This does raise the question of how might an individual in this condition convey their discomfort as well as indicate their desire to die.
For many individuals, debilitating diseases are present that cause immeasurable pain and suffering. Is it acceptable for these individuals to take their own lives even though they are not tired of living? It seems as if an individual has the capacity to make decisions concerning the circumstances that would lead to intervention via physician-assisted suicide in advance of these events occurring, their wishes should be observed. This means that the person whose family history reflects an elevated rate of an illness such as Alzheimer’s disease can decide prior to or following the initial diagnosis if physician-assisted suicide is included in the long-term course of treatment, their wishes should be followed. It allows the individual to have control over a disease that strips the individual of many options.
Certainly there is the potential to reach a general consensus to oversee physician-assisted suicides allowing those who wish to choose the circumstances of their death can be allowed to die with dignity. As people are encouraged to live their lives as they choose, perhaps having control over the manner in which they experience death demonstrates an elevated level of compassion. The only thing certain in this life is death. Perhaps one day, the ability to choose death over prolonged suffering will be possible.
