Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide is an issue that has been included in public debates for decades now. This is due to the morality of the issue and when it can be regarded as acceptable or not. Euthanasia is the act of ending a life in a manner wherein the person will not experience further pain. Physician-assisted suicide, on the other hand, is the act of providing the means for an individual to commit suicide. At this time, there are only a number of countries that support euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide.
The issue is sensitive because it involves killing a human being. However, some people believe it is necessary to ease the pain that they are feeling because sooner or later they will also end up in the same manner. Brock explores voluntary active euthanasia primarily from the perspective of self determination. Patients are determined to actively participate in their health care, which makes euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide acceptable.
Kavanaugh also believes that “the prevailing personal value for those who wish to terminate their own lives or the lives of others is, again, ‘choice’ -or, as the courts frame it, ‘the liberty interest’” (p. 133). The case of Karen Quinlan is an interesting case regarding euthanasia. She was unconscious throughout her life after her accident. She was able to wean off the mechanical ventilator to be able to breathe on her own.
Although she was not able to live her life normally, Karen was still able to “live” until her death, which could not have been done if she underwent euthanasia. It was good that her parents decided against euthanasia even if the initial request for it was approved by the law. She was not able to decide for herself but the people who cared for her made sure to actively participate in her health care, which allowed her life to last longer than what was foreseen.