People die every day a due to several causes such as natural death, disease, poisoning, accident, and now assisted suicide. Arguably, people have the fundamental human freedom to choose how they die and if the quality of an individual’s life is terrible, such a person has the right to opt death to stop their suffering (Byock 110). Euthanasia or assisted suicide is an option for patients who suffer from real illnesses to end their suffering by selecting to die as opposed to living with excruciating pain and prolonged suffering. Battin, argues that assisted suicide is the use of particular medication by physicians to help suffering patients to terminate their life painlessly (36). Assisted death has become a widespread approach to ending life in most nations in the world. Assisted suicide has both pros and cons in equal measure. Arguments in favor of assisted suicide and Euthanasia include; they reduce suffering, people have their own free will to choose how they die, the concept of the quality of life, dignity in dying, humane, and others.
There are several arguments in favor of Euthanasia and assisted suicide. The people who are involved in assisted suicide and Euthanasia are physicians, the ailing patients who are suffering and are in excruciating pain, and perhaps the members of the patient’s family. The main issue here is how to assist such patients to end their life painlessly, with dignity, and without compromising the quality of life. Markedly, assisted suicide is essential in certain circumstances. First, people have their own free will and or freedom of choice and as such ailing patients need to have the power to choose ending their life (Kamm 53). The other argument in favor of assisted suicide concerns the quality of life. Notably, it is only the ailing patient who knows how they feel and how prolonged death, emotional, and physical pain caused by disease affects their quality of life (Kamm 54). Moreover, all people whether ailing or not ailing must be able to terminate their life or die with dignity and for this reason assisted suicide becomes an alternative.
Besides, people who have witnessed assisted suicide can attest the fact that slow death is painless and should be allowed in extreme circumstances more so where a patient is in excessive pain due to disease. Rodriquez points that assisted suicide is necessary to make it possible for prudent use of resources (251). Ideally, it is sensible to channel the human resources, medications, hospital beds, equipment, and physicians' assistance towards life-saving care and treatments to people who have high chances of living rather than to those with a low probability of living. The next argument in favor of Euthanasia and assisted suicide is humane. Primarily, it becomes more humane to allow individuals with intractable diseases and suffering to choose to end their life other than live in distress. Also, Euthanasia at times is known to help in shortening the suffering and the grief of loved ones. Arguably, it seems like an act of kindness to assist humans who are in excess pain to opt for assisted suicide or Euthanasia as an option to put them into rest and away from the pain and suffering.
Assisted suicide and Euthanasia are problems worth addressing. Sometimes assisted suicide or Euthanasia happens illegally, unethically, and without the physicians seeking the informed consents from the suffering individual. Typically, people who are in excruciating pain and intractable suffering have their own free will to choose how to terminate or to end their life. Merino, says that the ethical argument states that a mentally mature or competent person and who is terminally ill can exert their own free will, comply with strict legal safeguards, and lastly be allowed to take a prescribed medication that ends their life slowly (23). To this end, people have the freedom of choice, and this includes the right to control their body and their life without infringing on the rights of others. The theory of utilitarianism says that " Actions are right to the extent that they produce happiness, and wrong to the extent that they produce unhappiness, unhappiness means pain while happiness means pleasure," (Rieke, Richard, and Malcolm 56). Arguably, in line with this quotation assisted suicide and Euthanasia could be seen as ethical actions since they assist individuals to end their life thereby producing happiness, relieving them from pain, and this means pleasure for the person and their loved ones. Also, the greatest happiness principle argues that " all things are desirable as long as we are doing them for our good and that of other people, and these things exempt people from pain and they enhance both quality and quantity," (Rieke et al. 60). This proposition is strong support of assisted suicide and Euthanasia as both focus on reducing pain and enhancing people's quality of life.
Assisted suicide contains some ethical significance. Noticeably, assisted death allows people to exert their free will in choosing how they want to terminate their life. Langwith says that the widely accepted and spread ethical principle of respecting people's autonomy and freedom of choice is that people have the right to control their lives while the state should not enact regulations that impede citizens from choosing how and when they die (33). The ethical theories are in strong support of this proposition. One of such approaches is the American Value Systems. According to this theory "Individual values can be discovered in the arguments of ourselves and others. However, there is a difficulty in attempting to define a whole system of values for a person or a group", (Rieke et al. 88). This quote from the American Values systems is significant in that it supports people to exert their values free will without being influenced by an external component that defines their own free will and values system. Another theory in support of the ethical significance of assisted suicide is the Puritan- Pioneer- Peasant value system. According to this theory, “people have an obligation to themselves, to the people that surround them, and to their God," (Rieke et al. 89). Dignity is one of the positive words associated with this theory. This quote is significant in the sense that it supports the proposition that people have the freedom of choice to express their rights while not interfering with the rights of others. This significance is in tandem with the ethical argument for assisted suicide.
The ethical theories discussed by (Rieke et al. 88 - 93), explain how the issue of assisted death and Euthanasia can be addressed or resolved. First, the Puritan- Pioneer- Peasant value system. This theory is ethical as it supports human dignity and assisted dying is a way to die with dignity. Also, this proposition is ethical as it supports the fact that people have the freedom of choice to express their rights while not interfering with the rights of others. The next theory is the American Values systems and is significant in that it supports people to exert their values free will. This theory is ethical deters external components from defining people’s value systems as these systems are personal. The other approach is the enlightenment value system. According to this theory, there is a need for people to enact laws and regulations to govern their actions by establishing limits and restrains to these actions. This approach is ethical as it necessitates the need for having laws to govern ethics. Arguably, these theories can address the problem of assisted suicide by making sure that it is only done to enhance dignity in dying and without compromising people's own free will and freedom of choice. However, according to the enlightenment values system, people need to enact laws and regulation that establish limits and restraints for assisted suicide and Euthanasia for specific situations. To this end, assisted suicide and Euthanasia will only happen legally, ethically, and physicians must seek informed consents from the ailing or suffering people who are in excruciating pain. Moreover, assisted suicide must only apply to enhance the quality of life and allow people to die with dignity.
In conclusion, arguments in favor of assisted suicide and Euthanasia include; they reduce suffering, people have their own free will to choose how they die, the concept of the quality of life, dignity in dying, humane, and others. Euthanasia or assisted suicide is an option for patients who suffer from real illnesses to end their suffering by selecting to die as opposed to living with excruciating pain and long-suffering. Assisted suicide involves the use of particular medication by physicians to help suffering patients to terminate their life painlessly. There is a need for States to enact laws for limiting or restraining assisted death. These laws will ensure that assisted suicide and Euthanasia will only happen legally, ethically, and physicians must seek informed consents from the ailing or suffering people who are in excruciating pain. Moreover, assisted suicide will apply only enhance the quality of life and allow people to die with dignity.
Works Cited
Battin, Margaret P. "Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide." Oxford Handbooks Online (2009): n. Pag. Print.
Byock, Ira. "The Case Against Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia." Oxford Handbooks Online (2014): n. Pag. Print.
Kamm, F. M. "Four-Step Arguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia." Bioethical Prescriptions (2013): 53-83. Print.
Langwith, Jacqueline. Suicide. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Print.
Merino, Noël. Assisted Suicide. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Print.
Rieke, Richard D, and Malcolm O. Sillars. Argumentation and the Decision Making Process. Glenview: Scott, Foresman, 1984. Print.
Rodriquez, Eduardo. "The Arguments for Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide: Ethical Reflection." The Linacre Quarterly 68.3 (2001): 251-261. Print.
