The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill would give terminally ill adults with less than six months to live the right to die once the request has been signed off by two doctors and a high court judge.
- Assisted dying: Terminally ill patient receives lethal drugs from medical practitioner and self-administers them to end their own life.
- Euthanasia: Physician deliberately administers lethal drugs to end patient's life, potentially to relieve suffering, even if not terminally ill.
Euthanasia/ Assisted dying: Ethical dilemmas of ending life
- Pros:
- Alleviates suffering: Provides relief from chronic misery and vegetative states; offers a humane way to end prolonged suffering.
- Preserves patient’s dignity & autonomy: By recognizing the patient's right to make end-of-life decisions.
- Professional & ethical approach: As it involves careful evaluation by a medical board; includes legal pre-scrutiny to prevent potential misuse, etc.
- Cons:
- Ethical & moral challenges: Conflicts with medical ethics of preserving life; creating a moral dilemma for physicians trained to save lives.
- Risk of misuse: Danger of vested interests (e.g., organ transplantation considerations), etc.
- Sociocultural & philosophical sensitivities: Conflicts with cultural and religious beliefs (e.g., Christian theology) about life and death.
- E.g., Immanuel Kant says that the voluntary act of destroying oneself can “never, under any circumstances, be regarded as allowable.”
