The term euthanasia is derived from the Greek word which means good death. It refers to the practice of putting an end to someones life in a painless way. It can also mean deliberate termination of life at the precise request of the person who dies. For the word euthanasia to qualify for use, the act must be started by the person who intends to die. The term can also encompass voluntary and involuntary ending of life. There are also some terms which are not clearly defined but are related to the term euthanasia. They include passive euthanasia, active euthanasia, physician assisted suicide, and involuntary euthanasia (Walter, 1999).
Passive euthanasia, involves quickening the death of a person by removing life supporting equipments, stopping all medical procedures and medications, stopping food and water and allowing the patient to dehydrate and die of hunger, and stopping cardio- pulmonary resuscitation. It may also involve administering high doses of pain killers like morphine with the full knowledge of the effects of high doses of the drug given. This can be done to terminally ill patients who are experiencing a lot of pain so that their death can be faster enough (Barry, 2004).
Active euthanasia will mean causing death of a person directly while responding to the appeal of the patient. Patients who normally request for such death are those who are aware that in the long run they are going to die and the death may not be a descent one. Another term is physician assisted suicide whereby the physician avails the information or provides the means for terminating life like lethal doses of sleeping pills. In this method it is the patient who administers the life terminating substance. Finally the term involuntary euthanasia means terminating the life of a person who has not requested to be killed (Walter, 1999).
The debate on the morality of euthanasia has been debated extensively in the recent past. The topic is considered important and draws a lot of attention because it touches on the life and death. Owing to the nature of the topic, there is no single resolution to it which will satisfy both parties involved in the debate. There are several groups who believe in right to death and consider euthanasia as a morally accepted practice in conditions where human dignity is compromised like in severe pain. The groups which are supporting life view euthanasia as being morally unacceptable regardless of the situation the person may be in (Gormally, 1997).
The lawmakers all over the world believes that suicide is acceptable or that it cannot be efficiently be criminalized. In situations where the doctors are allowed to help patients to end their lives, most countries view it negatively. In some countries, it is allowed under very precise conditions like unbearable pain, but it is rarely practiced. Roman Catholic Church remains strongly opposed to the subject of euthanasia and suicide. The reasons which the church opposes are that committing suicide means that an individual is the master of hisher body but not God. Suicide also shows that the person doing it has no charity for himherself. It is also cited to result in failures of individual responsibilities like parental and social duties. Suicide is considered as being against the law according to the teachings of the bible and the holy church of Christ. It describes suicide as the most terrible crime and a person who commits suicide should be denied Christian burial (Barry, 2004).
Official declaration on euthanasia as issued by the sacred congregation for the doctrine of the faith stated that the church prohibits all forms of physician assisted suicide and euthanasia. Performing euthanasia on another person or doing it for your self is considered to go against the divine law, crime against the dignity of man, crime against life and an attack directed against humanity. Even on the current version of the catechism of the Catholic Church, suicide and euthanasia still remains unlawful.
Because of the moral reasons most people are not comfortable that other factors which are not related to the well being of the patient may be used as a reason to perform euthanasia. In this case a son may want his ill father to be killed so that he can have his inheritance, or even doctors who need a hospital bed occupied by a patient who is seriously ill and is not responding to treatment may use euthanasia to eliminate the patient (Gormally, 1997). Cases of attempted suicide clearly show that there are many people who would have loved to die, but later reconsidered their action. If euthanasia was legalized, even people with mild depression would request for euthanasia. It is also not easy to know whether the persons request for death is not due to depression but because of the pain they are going through. Practicing euthanasia go against the Hippocratic Oath which the doctors swore in order to protect life (Barry, 2004).
People who take part in the debate on the morality of euthanasia have their reasons for the support or for not supporting the act. Both sides have their valid reasons for the stance they have assumed. People supporting euthanasia want to ensure that terminally ill people are not forced to undergo prolonged pain and lose their human dignity, while the people against the practice dread the possible abuses and also view it has going against the right to life. They also value their religious values which states that life should be respected regardless of the condition.
Passive euthanasia, involves quickening the death of a person by removing life supporting equipments, stopping all medical procedures and medications, stopping food and water and allowing the patient to dehydrate and die of hunger, and stopping cardio- pulmonary resuscitation. It may also involve administering high doses of pain killers like morphine with the full knowledge of the effects of high doses of the drug given. This can be done to terminally ill patients who are experiencing a lot of pain so that their death can be faster enough (Barry, 2004).
Active euthanasia will mean causing death of a person directly while responding to the appeal of the patient. Patients who normally request for such death are those who are aware that in the long run they are going to die and the death may not be a descent one. Another term is physician assisted suicide whereby the physician avails the information or provides the means for terminating life like lethal doses of sleeping pills. In this method it is the patient who administers the life terminating substance. Finally the term involuntary euthanasia means terminating the life of a person who has not requested to be killed (Walter, 1999).
The debate on the morality of euthanasia has been debated extensively in the recent past. The topic is considered important and draws a lot of attention because it touches on the life and death. Owing to the nature of the topic, there is no single resolution to it which will satisfy both parties involved in the debate. There are several groups who believe in right to death and consider euthanasia as a morally accepted practice in conditions where human dignity is compromised like in severe pain. The groups which are supporting life view euthanasia as being morally unacceptable regardless of the situation the person may be in (Gormally, 1997).
The lawmakers all over the world believes that suicide is acceptable or that it cannot be efficiently be criminalized. In situations where the doctors are allowed to help patients to end their lives, most countries view it negatively. In some countries, it is allowed under very precise conditions like unbearable pain, but it is rarely practiced. Roman Catholic Church remains strongly opposed to the subject of euthanasia and suicide. The reasons which the church opposes are that committing suicide means that an individual is the master of hisher body but not God. Suicide also shows that the person doing it has no charity for himherself. It is also cited to result in failures of individual responsibilities like parental and social duties. Suicide is considered as being against the law according to the teachings of the bible and the holy church of Christ. It describes suicide as the most terrible crime and a person who commits suicide should be denied Christian burial (Barry, 2004).
Official declaration on euthanasia as issued by the sacred congregation for the doctrine of the faith stated that the church prohibits all forms of physician assisted suicide and euthanasia. Performing euthanasia on another person or doing it for your self is considered to go against the divine law, crime against the dignity of man, crime against life and an attack directed against humanity. Even on the current version of the catechism of the Catholic Church, suicide and euthanasia still remains unlawful.
Because of the moral reasons most people are not comfortable that other factors which are not related to the well being of the patient may be used as a reason to perform euthanasia. In this case a son may want his ill father to be killed so that he can have his inheritance, or even doctors who need a hospital bed occupied by a patient who is seriously ill and is not responding to treatment may use euthanasia to eliminate the patient (Gormally, 1997). Cases of attempted suicide clearly show that there are many people who would have loved to die, but later reconsidered their action. If euthanasia was legalized, even people with mild depression would request for euthanasia. It is also not easy to know whether the persons request for death is not due to depression but because of the pain they are going through. Practicing euthanasia go against the Hippocratic Oath which the doctors swore in order to protect life (Barry, 2004).
People who take part in the debate on the morality of euthanasia have their reasons for the support or for not supporting the act. Both sides have their valid reasons for the stance they have assumed. People supporting euthanasia want to ensure that terminally ill people are not forced to undergo prolonged pain and lose their human dignity, while the people against the practice dread the possible abuses and also view it has going against the right to life. They also value their religious values which states that life should be respected regardless of the condition.
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