Physician Assisted Suicide allows patients to maintain their dignity

Physician+Assisted+Suicide+allows+patients+to+maintain+their+dignity

Hannah Hornberger, Student Contributor

EDITOR’S NOTE: Freshmen in Mr. Naylor’s ninth grade honors English class recently read an article by Rob Wright titled “Why Death With Dignity in the U.S. Remains the Holy Grail.” The article looks at the controversial subject of Physician Assisted Suicide from many different angles. The students were then asked to compose an opinion piece expressing their feelings on whether or not Physician Assisted Suicide should be legalized in all 50 states in the USA (currently it is allowed in five states). What follows are some of the top student responses, both in favor of and opposing Physician Assisted Suicide.

About 353,000 babies are born every day. Nearly 150,000 people die every day.

These may just seem like random statistics, but there is a point I’m trying to make. People die all the time. And one way or another, we are all going to die as well. The only thing that separates us in the long run is how we go out. According to the World Health Organization, 4.9% of deaths in 2002 were caused by AIDS, the number four leading cause of death globally . As you may know, AIDS is a very serious disease which affects many people across the country. There is also no cure for AIDS, which is why it is such a detrimental disease. Whenever someone is infected with this disease, they basically wither away. Their immune system deteriorates and they are left with a husk of the person they used to be. Now, why am I telling you all of this? Well, AIDS is just one of the many terminal illnesses that plague America. A terminal illness can be defined as “a disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated and that is reasonably expected to result in the death of the patient within a short period of time.” Terminal illnesses are among the worst forms of thing that a person can endure. If you or a loved one was struck with a disease like this, what would you do about it?

When it comes to terminal illnesses like this, there is basically no grey area. They will kill you, and there is no escaping that. The only question is when you will die. But is life really worth living if every day you are asking yourself if you will ever wake up again? Should you have to wonder if you will ever get to say goodbye to your family every day? Every human life has value, but one spent like this shouldn’t have to exist. This is why there is such a thing as physician assisted suicide.

Physician assisted suicide is when a doctor provides a terminally ill patient with the means to end their life- usually a lethal dose of drugs. This provides the patient with a way to die peacefully, instead of painfully and abruptly. As of right now there are only five states in America that have legalized physician assisted suicide (PAS). But I believe that physician assisted suicide should be legal in all 50 states. PAS would provide a sense of surety and calm to a patient, while ending their life with mercy and dignity.

There is no saying when you might die, or in what condition you will be in when you finally die. But with PAS, you can die when you choose- before you recede into a completely unrecognizable state.

To begin with, I would like to reiterate  that all human life has worth, and we should respect that. Which is why I believe that a person should have their own life in their hands. Many terminally ill patients wake up every morning knowing that they are one day closer to their death, unsure if they will even make it to lunch that day. People should not have to suffer through this. Human life is valuable and shouldn’t be like that, which is why I believe that they should be able to end their lives through PAS. Everyone deserves to have some sort of surety in their life. With terminally ill patients, there is no such thing as surety. They never know what might happen throughout the day. Through PAS, a patient will know exactly when, where, and how they will die. Knowing all of this would give them a sense of calm, finally relaxing after a long struggle with illness. They have the opportunity to say goodbye to their family and friends with clarity whenever they choose. Doesn’t a person deserve to at least be able to tell their family that they love them?

This would also let people die with more dignity, which is why some people refer to PAS as “death with dignity”. Would you want to have your family say goodbye to you while you were gasping for breath, not even able to say anything in return? Or would you want to say goodbye to them and tell them that you loved them one more time, while you still resembled your old self? If a person is suffering through treatment while a disease is advancing in their bodies, they will deteriorate rapidly. There is no saying when you might die, or in what condition you will be in when you finally die. But with PAS, you can die when you choose- before you recede into a completely unrecognizable state.

There is one more thing that I would like to address. A person has the option to deny treatment of a disease all together. They can say that they want to die naturally, and there is nothing that the doctor can do about that. So if a person really wants to die, they can refer to that option. But why would you do that; why would you still suffer that long? There should be an option to meet in the middle. Die painlessly yet when you choose-PAS. If a person wants to die, they will find a way. It is only logical that PAS should be an option, and it is much more humane than letting a disease overcome you completely.

In conclusion, I believe that PAS should be legalized in all 50 states. Death isn’t an easy topic to talk about, and it is even harder to actually experience. Which is exactly why we should have a better alternative. Physician assisted suicide is more humane, lets people die with dignity, and it only makes sense. Every human life is priceless, and we shouldn’t let diseases destroy that. A life should be in a person’s hands, and no one can take that away from them.