Euthanasia .

Mercy Killing

Dr.Temur Barkalaia,MD
Tbilisi, Georgia 2020
 What is Euthanasia?
 It is the act or practice of ending the life of a
person either by lethal injection or the suspension
of medical treatment
 Because of this, many view euthanasia as simply
bringing relief by alleviating pain and suffering.
The word has also been applied to situations when
a decision is made to refrain from exercising
"heroic" measures in an end-of-life situation.
 Types Of Euthanasia
 Active euthanasia
 Passive euthanasia
 Voluntary euthanasia
 Involuntary euthanasia
 Indirect euthanasia
 Assisted suicide
 Active Euthanasia

To end a person's life by use of drugs, whether by

oneself or with the aid of a physician.
 Active euthanasia is when death is brought about

by an act - for example when a person is killed by

being given an overdose of pain-killers.
 Passive Euthanasia
Passive euthanasia is when death
is brought about by an omission -
i.e. when someone lets the person
die. This can be by withdrawing
or withholding treatment
 Withdrawing treatment: for

example, switching off a

machine that is keeping a
person alive, so that they die
of their disease.
 Withholding treatment: for
example, not carrying out
surgery that will extend life
for a short time.
 Voluntary Euthanasia
Voluntary euthanasia is committed with the willing
and autonomous cooperation of the subject. This
means that the subject is free from direct or indirect
pressure from others.
 Involuntary euthanasia
Non-voluntary euthanasia occurs when the
person is unconscious or otherwise unable
to make a meaningful choice between living
and dying, and an appropriate person takes
the decision on their behalf.

 Involuntary euthanasia occurs when the

person who dies chooses life and is killed
anyway. This is usually called murder,
but it is possible to imagine cases where
the killing would count as being for the
benefit of the person who dies.
 Indirect euthanasia
 This means providing treatment (usually to reduce
pain) that has the side effect of speeding the patient's
death.

 Since the primary intention is not to kill, this is seen

by some people (but not all) as morally acceptable.

 A justification along these lines is formally called the

doctrine of double effect.
 Physician Assisted Suicide

This usually refers to cases where the person

who is going to die needs help to kill
themselves and asks for it. It may be
something as simple as getting drugs for the
person and putting those drugs within their
reach.
 Facts About Euthanasia
 The term Euthanasia originated from the Greek word for "good
death.“
 In classical Athens, city magistrates kept a supply of poison for
anyone who wished to die
 Euthanasia is legal in three countries worldwide: Belgium,
Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
 Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia are legal and widely
practiced in the Netherlands where: About 9% of all deaths were a
result of physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia in 1990.

 A 2003 study appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine

found that 11 percent of physicians surveyed (1,902 total) would,
under certain circumstances, be willing to hasten a patient's death
by prescribing medication, and that 7 percent would administer a
lethal injection, despite both acts being illegal at the time of the
survey.
Drugs Used
Drugs Used- Potassium Chloride
 Pro’s of Euthanasia

 Everyone has a right to decide when

their life should end.
 If the quality of life has become so bad,
a person may feel too much physical or
emotional pain.
 Today’s hospitals are overcrowded and
have too many patients. Some argue
that they should let those die that do
not have a chance of living on. In that
way there could be more room for
patients with diseases that can be cured.
 Reason’s against Euthanasia
 Doctors have a problem with euthanasia
because they have sworn an oath that does not
allow them to take part in the killing of people.
 Sometimes it is not clear if an ill person really
wants to die. Euthanasia should only take place
if someone really wants it or if they understand
how ill they are.
 Euthanasia and Religion
Many religions think that euthanasia is immoral. Some religions
regard it as a type of murder.

 The official Roman Catholic Church is against euthanasia

and says it is a crime. Protestants, on the other side, take a
more liberal view.
 Hindus think that, even though helping a person end a
painful life may be good, it interferes with the cycle of
death and rebirth.
 In Islam all forms of euthanasia are forbidden.
 In Japan more than half of all Shintoists think that you
should be allowed to help a person die if they ask for it.
 WHO? Aruna Shanbaug
INCIDENT? Aruna Shaunbsug was a nurse
working at the KEM Hospital in Mumbai on 27
November 1973 when she was strangled and
sodomized by Sohanlal Walmiki, a sweeper.
During the attack she was strangled with a chain,
and the deprivation of oxygen.
AFTER AFFECT? The lack of oxygen put her in a
vegetative state. She has been treated at KEM
since the incident and is kept alive by feeding
tube.

Aruna Shanbaug Case

 Aruna Shanbaug Case

THE COURT CASE: On behalf of Aruna, her friend

Pinki Virani, a social activist, filed a petition in the
Supreme Court arguing that the "continued existence of
Aruna is in violation of her right to live in dignity". The
Supreme Court made its decision on 7 March 2011.[5]
The court rejected the plea to discontinue Aruna's life
support but issued a set of broad guidelines legalising
passive euthanasia in India. The Supreme Court's
decision to reject the discontinuation of Aruna's life
support was based on the fact the hospital staff who
treat and take care of her did not support euthanizing
her.
 Jacob "Jack"
Kevorkian

commonly known as "Dr. Death", was an American pathologist, euthanasia

activist, painter, author, composer and instrumentalist. He is best known for
publicly championing a terminal patient's right to die via physician-assisted
suicide; he claimed to have assisted at least 130 patients to that end. He
famously said, "dying is not a crime"
 In 1999, Kevorkian was arrested and tried for his direct role in a case of

voluntary euthanasia. He was convicted of second-degree murder and

served eight years of a 10-to-25-year prison sentence. He was released on
parole on June 1, 2007, on condition he would not offer suicide advice to
any other person
 He quoted - My aim in helping the patient was not to cause death. My aim

was to end suffering. It's got to be decriminalized.

 Jacob "Jack" Kevorkian
One particular case that brought the
doctor into the limelight was the
videotaped death of Thomas W. Hyde Jr.,
a 30-year-old Michigan resident with a
wife and baby daughter. Mr. Hyde
struggled daily with Lou Gehrig’s disease,
a.k.a. amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which
is a degenerative neurological disorder. By
the time he sought the assistance of Dr.
Kevorkian, Hyde was paralyzed and could
no longer swallow by his own facility.
Suctioning was needed to keep him from
choking to death on his own saliva
 The doctor rigged an elaborate system to
assist Hyde in ending his life. A tube, with
one end connected to a tank of carbon
monoxide and the other to a respirator mask
that cover his nose and mouth, was fitted
with a paperclip that cut the flow of gas. The
end of a string was attached to the paperclip
and the other end was given to Hyde. With a
simple jerk of his hand, the clip flung loose,
releasing the lethal gas that penetrated his
lungs. He was dead within twenty minutes.
 Although the case was brought to trial, a jury
found Kevorkian not guilty. The decision to
exonerate the doctor seemed to reside on the
grounds that his actions were motivated by
compassion and that he additionally acted
according to local law that provided for a patient’s
pain relief
 The Belgium Twin Case
 Deaf twins who discovered they were going blind
and would never see each other again are
euthanized in Belgian hospital
 Identical twin brothers euthanised by doctors in
unique Belgium case
 Twins, who were born deaf, made decision after
learning they would go blind
 The brothers, who spent their lives together, were
unable to bear the thought of never seeing each
other again
 The Belgium Twin Case
 The brothers, who spent their lives together, were
unable to bear the thought of never seeing each
other again In Belgium, some 1,133 cases of
euthanasia - mostly for terminal cancer - were
recorded in 2011, about one per cent of all deaths
in the country, according to official figures.
 But this case was unusual as neither twin was
suffering extreme physical pain or was terminally
ill.
 The two brothers, who have not been named but were pictured on
Belgian television, both worked as cobblers and shared a flat
together, The Telegraph has reported.
 David Dufour, the doctor who presided over the euthanasia, told
RTL television news the twins had taken the decision in 'full
conscience'.
 He said they were 'very happy' and it had was a 'relief' to see the
end of their suffering.
 'They had a cup of coffee in the hall, it went well and a rich
conversation,' Mr Dufour said.
 'Then the separation from their parents and brother was very
serene and beautiful.
 'At the last there was a little wave of their hands and then they
were Belgium was the second country in the world after the
Netherlands to legalise euthanasia in 2002 but it currently applies
only to people over the age of 18.
 Other jurisdictions where it is permitted include
Luxembourg and the U.S. state of Oregon.
 Just days after the twins were killed Belgium's ruling
Socialists tabled a legal amendment which would allow
the euthanasia of children and Alzheimer's sufferers.
 The draft legislation calls for 'the law to be extended to
minors if they are capable of discernment or affected by
an incurable illness or suffering that we cannot alleviate.'
 The proposed changes are likely to be approved by other
parties, although no date has yet been put forward for a
parliamentary debate.gone.'