UNIVERSIDAD PEDAGOGICA EXPERIMENTAL LIBERTADOR
INSTITUTO UNIVERSITARIO "RAFAEL ALBERTO ESCOBAR LARA"
Voluntary Euthanasia:
A Way to Express Yourself
A Way to Express Yourself
Do you think it is fair to let a person suffer to die? Just imagine a person who has been in overwhelming pain and agony for years, and that person actually wanted to die, but it can not happen because voluntary euthanasia is not considered as an excellent choice to avoid affliction in people with chronic physical condition. It is known that society accepts that only God can take people’s lives away; however, if those people claim the right to die with dignity and end with their own lives because they can not stand it anymore, their right should be respected. Therefore, Voluntary Euthanasia should be legalized for people who are in terminal illness.
Euthanasia (from Greek: ευθανασία -ευ, eat, "good", θάνατος, thanatos, death) is the practice of terminating the life of a person or animal in a painless or minimally painful way in order to prevent suffering or other undesired conditions in life. This may be voluntary or involuntary, and carried out with or without a physician. In a medical environment, this can be carried out by oral, intravenous or intramuscular drug administration1. What most of the people believe is that euthanasia just means killing a person when he/she requests it; but, there are some aspects they have to consider in order to establish differences between voluntary euthanasia and the other types:
· Voluntary euthanasia: When the person who is killed has requested to be killed.
Non-voluntary: When the person who is killed made no request and gave no consent.
Involuntary euthanasia: When the person who is killed made an expressed wish to the contrary.
Assisted suicide: Someone provides an individual with the information, guidance, and means to take his or her own life with the intention that they will be used for this purpose. When it is a doctor who helps another person to kill themselves it is called "physician assisted suicide."
Euthanasia by Action: Intentionally causing a person's death by performing an action such as by giving a lethal injection.
Euthanasia by Omission: Intentionally causing death by not providing necessary and ordinary (usual and customary) care or food and water2.
On the other hand, terminal illness is medical terminology popularized in the 20th century for an active and progressive disease which cannot be cured and is expected to lead to death. Palliative care is often prescribed to manage symptoms and improve quality of life. A patient who has such an illness is referred to as a terminal patient or terminally ill. Conditions said to be terminal include (but are not limited to): cancer, emphysema, liver failure, kidney failure, asbestosis, mesothelioma, some mental illness and heart disease. AIDS was once considered to be a terminal illness but modern medications make it possible for patients to live with the condition for many years after diagnosis and they often die from other causes3.
One of the most important reasons to apply euthanasia is the unbearable pain that patients feel when illness is in its last phase. Even when a patient who has been taking medicines to kill the pain, there is a possibility that this treatment does not eliminate it and because of this, people make the decision to request for voluntary euthanasia. In addition to this, people have the right to alleviate the pain and also have the right to avoid excruciating ache; they have opinions, decisions and choices that must be taken into account because their way to think or express feelings about how they want to die is needed to be appreciated in order to provide them a peacefully death. It is not a secret that voluntary euthanasia could be a controversial topic; nevertheless, it is an extraordinary option for human beings who are passing through a terminal disease.
If a human being wants to die, that right should be respected. A person who wants to finish his/her life deserves to be heard; moreover, he/she deserves to be helped to die with honor, because it is not an obligation to live in misery and suffering. On the other hand, patients’ families are in constant preoccupation because they have to carry out with the expensive treatments that require a person in a chronic physical and psychological condition, and sometimes they can not afford it. Here, there are two questions: first, If you had a relative that request voluntary euthanasia, would you let your relative suffer a depressive and painful death? and second, would you release your relative from pain? It is difficult to answer quickly these two questions, but people need to think carefully about it, and try to understand that nobody wants to be condemned to suffer for a long time.“Euthanasia is a rejection of importance and value of a human life”4 . But for instance, what about capital punishment? Is it a rejection of the importance of a human life? Of course, it is because government is killing someone and the only difference is the crime committed by somebody. Nowadays, people have started to think about the importance of voluntary euthanasia supporting this cause. In fact, there are two countries where this relevant issue is legal; Netherlands legalized it in 2001, and then Belgium joined to Netherlands in 2002. So, in those countries, practicing voluntary euthanasia is a reality. It is time to change our beliefs and take into consideration that people can decide about their lives and destiny. For this reason, voluntary euthanasia must be legalized and considered as a reliable option for people with terminal illness.
Euthanasia (from Greek: ευθανασία -ευ, eat, "good", θάνατος, thanatos, death) is the practice of terminating the life of a person or animal in a painless or minimally painful way in order to prevent suffering or other undesired conditions in life. This may be voluntary or involuntary, and carried out with or without a physician. In a medical environment, this can be carried out by oral, intravenous or intramuscular drug administration1. What most of the people believe is that euthanasia just means killing a person when he/she requests it; but, there are some aspects they have to consider in order to establish differences between voluntary euthanasia and the other types:
· Voluntary euthanasia: When the person who is killed has requested to be killed.
Non-voluntary: When the person who is killed made no request and gave no consent.
Involuntary euthanasia: When the person who is killed made an expressed wish to the contrary.
Assisted suicide: Someone provides an individual with the information, guidance, and means to take his or her own life with the intention that they will be used for this purpose. When it is a doctor who helps another person to kill themselves it is called "physician assisted suicide."
Euthanasia by Action: Intentionally causing a person's death by performing an action such as by giving a lethal injection.
Euthanasia by Omission: Intentionally causing death by not providing necessary and ordinary (usual and customary) care or food and water2.
On the other hand, terminal illness is medical terminology popularized in the 20th century for an active and progressive disease which cannot be cured and is expected to lead to death. Palliative care is often prescribed to manage symptoms and improve quality of life. A patient who has such an illness is referred to as a terminal patient or terminally ill. Conditions said to be terminal include (but are not limited to): cancer, emphysema, liver failure, kidney failure, asbestosis, mesothelioma, some mental illness and heart disease. AIDS was once considered to be a terminal illness but modern medications make it possible for patients to live with the condition for many years after diagnosis and they often die from other causes3.
One of the most important reasons to apply euthanasia is the unbearable pain that patients feel when illness is in its last phase. Even when a patient who has been taking medicines to kill the pain, there is a possibility that this treatment does not eliminate it and because of this, people make the decision to request for voluntary euthanasia. In addition to this, people have the right to alleviate the pain and also have the right to avoid excruciating ache; they have opinions, decisions and choices that must be taken into account because their way to think or express feelings about how they want to die is needed to be appreciated in order to provide them a peacefully death. It is not a secret that voluntary euthanasia could be a controversial topic; nevertheless, it is an extraordinary option for human beings who are passing through a terminal disease.
If a human being wants to die, that right should be respected. A person who wants to finish his/her life deserves to be heard; moreover, he/she deserves to be helped to die with honor, because it is not an obligation to live in misery and suffering. On the other hand, patients’ families are in constant preoccupation because they have to carry out with the expensive treatments that require a person in a chronic physical and psychological condition, and sometimes they can not afford it. Here, there are two questions: first, If you had a relative that request voluntary euthanasia, would you let your relative suffer a depressive and painful death? and second, would you release your relative from pain? It is difficult to answer quickly these two questions, but people need to think carefully about it, and try to understand that nobody wants to be condemned to suffer for a long time.“Euthanasia is a rejection of importance and value of a human life”4 . But for instance, what about capital punishment? Is it a rejection of the importance of a human life? Of course, it is because government is killing someone and the only difference is the crime committed by somebody. Nowadays, people have started to think about the importance of voluntary euthanasia supporting this cause. In fact, there are two countries where this relevant issue is legal; Netherlands legalized it in 2001, and then Belgium joined to Netherlands in 2002. So, in those countries, practicing voluntary euthanasia is a reality. It is time to change our beliefs and take into consideration that people can decide about their lives and destiny. For this reason, voluntary euthanasia must be legalized and considered as a reliable option for people with terminal illness.
“God is not the only one who takes lives away"
Think about it...
Author:
Mayerlyn Rojas I.D.: 17.197850
Prof. Manuel Adrián Arrioja
Prof. Diana Feliciano
Think about it...
Author:
Mayerlyn Rojas I.D.: 17.197850
Prof. Manuel Adrián Arrioja
Prof. Diana Feliciano
REFERENCES
(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia
(2) http://www.euthanasia.com/definitions.html
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_illness
(4) http://www.euthanasia.com/argumentsagainsteuthanasia.html
(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia
(2) http://www.euthanasia.com/definitions.html
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_illness
(4) http://www.euthanasia.com/argumentsagainsteuthanasia.html
3 comentarios:
hi.. your final coment scared me because i`d never thought about that and you are so right.
congartulations... your job is great.
I totally agree at your proposal, because if government send people to war, governmet should allow and respect people to make decisions about their own lives!
15.9
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