Biomedical Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Biomedical Ethics - Essay Example Each person has different perspectives on what their life should be. Each person has their own sense of moral responsibility. However, most of society generally does not condone the taking of another’s life. In conclusion, I will discuss the reasons why society should also consider the effects of Euthanasia or PAS on both the patient and those requested to help out before making a response to such requests. In laymen’s terms, Euthanasia is mercy killing; that is, a person, usually a physician, lets or causes a patient to die as a sign of mercy. Euthanasia can be passive, if no act was done since death is inevitable, or active, if an act was done to cause death. It can also be voluntary or involuntary, depending on the patient’s cognitive & decision-making skills. Physician Assisted Suicide, on the other hand, is different since the patient does the act, not the physician. The latter just supplies the patient with what he needs for the deed. In all cases, there are always 2 major roles – the one who is killed & the one who does the killing. Pro-life advocates look down on euthanasia, saying it is morally wrong for a physician to kill or let people die if saving them can be done. Supporters of Euthanasia say that it would be morally wrong not to do it since it is just right to grant a person his death if he so wishes. How can we tell if an ailing person’s life needs to end? Does it suffice when the patient says he doesn’t consider his life worth living; that for him death is a better alternative to living? A key component of the debate on euthanasia is the patient’s ability for self-determination. As Callahan (2002) puts it, â€Å"the self-determination in that case can only be effected by the moral and physical assistance of another. Euthanasia is thus no longer a matter only of self-determination†¦Ã¢â‚¬  There is something morally wrong in allowing one person to decide another’s fate. It also seems immoral for a person to be that