Background of the Study What is the purpose of ones life?

Probably, the purpose of ones life is to be happy and to make others happy as possible, live life to the great extent and die with dignity. Every individual is submitted to different stages of development from birth until his/her last breath. Each stage must be completed naturally without any manipulations especially the death of an individual. But how about in some special cases, wherein the individual is comatose or in a 50/50 situation? Imagine an event wherein you are part of a medical team caring for an individual who is comatose for more than a month. One day, while you are the nurse in- charge with the patient, the family come over and stated that they cannot anymore take the situation of the patient and so they wanted to end the sufferings of their son. For this reason, they asked you a favor to unplug the life-sustaining machines that are attached to the patient. What will be your opinion based on your principles and your experiences in which your alma mater had taught you? Euthanasia remains a very controversial topic in the present, not only for the reason that there are many moral dilemmas associated with it, but also in what comprises its definition. The term euthanasia was derived from the Greek words eu and thanatos which means good death or easy death. It is also known as Mercy killing. Euthanasia literally means putting a person to painless death especially in case of incurable suffering or when life becomes purposeless as a result of mental or physical handicap. Throughout the history, euthanasia becomes a colossal issue in the medical field. Wherein debates about the moral dignity of man and euthanasia are being questioned. Ethical contradiction is being taken into consideration in the study of this sensitive issue. Hippocrates who is known as a father of medicine once mentions euthanasia in his most famous oath for medical professionals entitled the Hippocratic Oath. The oath states "I will give no deadly

medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel". According to him, a medical professional is to relieve the pain and sufferings of the patient in one hand and to protect and prolong his life on the other. Besides, no religion approves euthanasia or mercy killing. Even though there are already bills passed to legalized euthanasia in every part of the world, the riddle is not yet solved. Euthanasia has been the centre for moral discussion for more centuries the individuals right over his/her life and the value placed on human life by the society seem polar opposites. Opponents of euthanasia maintain that there is a clear moral distinction between merely allowing someone to die and actually causing or deliberately hastening someones death. For some it is a crucial moral discernment. But then, opinion varies due to the fusion of ones principles and beliefs which is often influence by the persons educational background. The researchers believed that educational background plays an immense role in the practice of euthanasia especially the institution where they graduated. Typically, judgments regarding euthanasia are commonly affected by how one school views this kind of act. Some believe that it is a merciful act of dying while some believes this practice as a form of murder. In the Philippines, there are only two classes of nursing institutions: sectarian and nonsectarian. A sectarian nursing institution is an institution being supervised by religious sector. While a non-sectarian nursing institution is an institution not being supervised by a religious sector. These two classes of institution are unique in terms of method of teaching regarding this sensitive topic. Each has distinctions especially in forming decisions. Therefore, the researchers discern a need to conduct a comparative analysis about the different reactions of third year nursing students of the different sectarian and non-sectarian institutions in Zamboanga City regarding euthanasia.

This study aims to gather different reactions from the nursing students of sectarian and non-sectarian institutions in Zamboanga City regarding euthanasia. Through the different reactions, the researchers are looking forward to do a comparative analysis between the reactions of sectarian and non-sectarian institutions. Furthermore, the study hopes to enlighten us-nursing students to have an in depth understanding about Euthanasia.