Euthanasia and Assisted Death

chillibreeze writer — Nanda Gopal

 
Euthanasia is a term still new to many of us. It is a Greek term meaning ‘good death’. It means self
imposed death in a relatively painless and merciful way. Euthanasia is most often confused with another
term, ‘assisted death’. The difference is, in euthanasia, the person who is dying performs the last act
while in assisted death another person performs the act. For example a physician can help in the process
by giving lethal medications through the oral or intravenous routes. If the physician himself administers
it then it is physician-assisted suicide, but, if he sets up the injection apparatus and the person who
wants to die presses the button then it translates into euthanasia.

There has been a long standing debate on whether euthanasia should be legalized. On one side it has
been argued that for people on life support systems and people with long standing diseases causing
much pain and distress, euthanasia is a better choice. It helps in relieving them from pain and misery. In
cases like terminal cancers when the patient is in much pain and when people associated with them also
are put through a lot of pain and misery, it is much more practical and humane to grant the person
his/her wish to end his/her own life in a relatively painless and merciful way.

On the other hand there are ethical issues and political issues concerning the same subject. Oregon,
Belgium and The Netherlands are the only places in the world that have laws specifically permitting
assisted suicide. In 1997, Oregon was the first to enact the physician-assisted suicide law in the United
States. This law, known as the Death with Dignity Act, requires the Oregon Department of Human
Services to collect and analyze data on the people involved in the act and to publish annual reports. In
this way statistics are maintained. This law allows only physician-assisted suicide. Euthanasia is still
illegal.

In conclusion, though it is not ethical to assist or be involved in a human beings death, in some cases,
taking into consideration the involved person’s quality of life, euthanasia should be legalized. It will lead
to a person having an option to consult his/her medical practitioner and choosing the right time and
right way to end his/her life. But at the same time laws should be in place to make sure that there are
proper standards in place to avoid unnecessary deaths in our present day stress filled lives.

With the Supreme Court allowing “passive” euthanasia under “exceptional circumstances”, India on
Monday joined a handful of countries which have legalised mercy killing in some form or other.

“Passive euthanasia” is usually defined as withdrawing medical treatment with the deliberate intention
of causing the patient’s death. For example, if a patient requires kidney dialysis to survive, the doctors
disconnect the dialysis machine, allowing the patient to die soon.

This form of euthanasia is different from “active” euthanasia, or simply euthanasia, where the death is
caused by the use of lethal substances.
It is widely considered to be criminal homicide, but voluntary passive euthanasia is considered non-
criminal in several countries.

Euthanasia conducted with the consent of the patient is termed “voluntary euthanasia”, which is legal in
Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington.

When the patient brings about his or her own death with the assistance of a physician, the term
“assisted suicide” is often used.

If euthanasia is carried out on a patient, who is not in a condition to express his or her desire to die, it is
called non-voluntary euthanasia.

Examples include child euthanasia, which is illegal worldwide but decriminalised under certain specific
circumstances in the Netherlands under the Groningen Protocol.

It’s also legal in Albania if three or more family members consent to the decision.

Although both forms of euthanasia are illegal in Switzerland, assisted suicide is penalised only if it is
carried out “from selfish motives”.

In 1995, Australia’s Northern Territory had approved a euthanasia bill. It went into effect in 1996, but
the Australian Parliament overturned the bill the next year.

In Colombia, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of mercy killing in 1997 and recommended removing
penalties over it.

But, the ruling has not gone into effect as the Colombian Congress is yet to approve guidelines for it.

It is illegal for anyone to actively contribute to someone’s death in Ireland. However, it is not illegal to
remove life support and other treatment if a person requests for it — in other words, passive euthanasia
is legal.

In Mexico, active euthanasia is illegal but since 2008 the law allows the terminally ill to refuse
medication or further medical treatment to extend life.

Although active euthanasia still remains illegal in Norway, but the country has softened its penalties if a
caregiver takes the life of someone who is “hopelessly sick” and consents to the act.

While the Supreme Court of India has allowed passive euthanasia under “exceptional circumstances”, it
has made clear that active euthanasia is illegal.

The court also clarified that until Parliament enacts a law, its judgement on active and passive
euthanasia will be in force.

References
1. International task force on euthanasia and assisted suicide. For more info click here.

2. Physician-Assisted suicide, Department of Health Services, Oregon at Click here