Do nurses support physician assisted suicide?

Nurses General Nursing

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  1. Do you support physician assisted suicide?

    • 615
      yes
    • 274
      no
    • 78
      undecided

967 members have participated

Earlier today there was a thread regarding Dr. Kevorkian's release from prison. Just as I was adding my thoughts, it got moved to the Current Events restricted area.

At that time, it seemed like there was 100% support for him. Honestly, I was surprised, especially since not everyone he killed was terminally ill. (I'm from Michigan, though, so maybe I know more about his history).

So I'm wondering, do nurses generally support the theory of physician assisted suicide?

I support it. We often treat our pets with more dignity. I would never watch an animal suffer, why is it OK to allow humans to suffer?

I think it's interesting that everyone who posted that they do not support PAS didn't give any reasons as to why that is the case. It would be interesting to hear the reasons you feel that way.

I do support PAS in the controlled manner others have mentioned. However, I always wonder about the toll such things could take on healthcare workers. I believe people should have control of their lives. So often they lose everything else, and if they are mentally competent to make the decision to die, then I feel the morals and personal feelings of others should be irrelevent. We let people decide about DNRs... I think this is just a logical progression of that.

Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

Like others, under strict rules, I say 'yes'. Who am I to state that a person MUST live without quality of life? Maybe with psychological testing and several interviews...I don't know how they can regulate this, but, I can support it, but would not participate in it myself as a nurse.

Specializes in Too many to list.

Yes, for medical reasons with stringent guidelines.

Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.

I don't believe that it is moral or ethical to assist another person to die, and it is my opinion that doing so degrades the professions of medicine and nursing. Involving physicians, nurses, or any other "caring" professionals in the act of suicide creates potential conflicts of interest, and may cast doubts as to the motivations of the participants. (Just whose interests are they serving by assisting a patient to take his/her life? The patient's? The family members? Their own?) I believe that our professions must remain above these conflicts.

I marvel at the frequently-cited argument that we euthanize pets, and so should do the same with humans. Animals are our possessions. They are not due, nor do they usually receive the level of care and dignity reserved for human beings. We would NEVER leave a human infant unattended for hours a day while at work, but think nothing of doing so with a puppy. We would never take our poorly-behaved or non-housebroken child to the Humane Society for adoption, but we do so with our pets, and those that can't be placed in homes may eventually have to be euthanized for no better reason than lack of space. We would never choose to euthanize a child because his medical expenses outstripped our budget, but that is commonly done with household pets. So, I find this comparison between pets and humans to be quite faulty. Fortunately, we don't regard human beings as property to be done with as we choose. We place a higher value on human life and dignity, which is inconsistent in my view with medical professionals taking patients' lives.

Far better to make judicious use of life-sustaining technology in the first place, (ie not inserting feeding tubes in patients with degenerative conditions, not placing dying elderly patients on ventilators and forcing them to end their lives in ICU, not intubating 22 week preemies, etc.)

Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.
Far better to make judicious use of life-sustaining technology in the first place, (ie not inserting feeding tubes in patients with degenerative conditions, not placing dying elderly patients on ventilators and forcing them to end their lives in ICU, not intubating 22 week preemies, etc.)

Excellent post - echoes my thoughts.

Specializes in Pulmonology/Critical Care, Internal Med.

I do, I'm a RVT (vet tech), was for many years, euthanasia as we said in the vet practice is the most loving gift that you can give to your suffering pet. They will let you know when its time, just as we often know when its time. I personally woudln't want to have euthanasia. However, one of my biggest fears is that I will have a painful death or that i will not be given enough pain meds to stop all of my pain because they are worried I will stop breathing, etc. If it means that 10mg of Morphine every hour isn't enough keep it going, i'm going to die anyways, I'd rather go pain free than suffer longer than I have too.

Animals are our possessions. They are not due, nor do they usually receive the level of care and dignity reserved for human beings.

Uhh.......don't say that around anyone who works in an animal ER....

Specializes in Pulmonology/Critical Care, Internal Med.
I marvel at the frequently-cited argument that we euthanize pets, and so should do the same with humans. Animals are our possessions. They are not due, nor do they usually receive the level of care and dignity reserved for human beings. We would NEVER leave a human infant unattended for hours a day while at work, but think nothing of doing so with a puppy. We would never take our poorly-behaved or non-housebroken child to the Humane Society for adoption, but we do so with our pets, and those that can't be placed in homes may eventually have to be euthanized for no better reason than lack of space. We would never choose to euthanize a child because his medical expenses outstripped our budget, but that is commonly done with household pets.

Wow, as an RVT I take GREAT offense to your post. It is tasteless and has no basis in reality for the vast number of veterinary practices out there. Animals are due and for many they do recieve the same level of care I have infact seen where they recieve BETTER care than many humans. Being on both sides of the fence I CAN say this. All of our kennels were in our direct view at all times. Even in the wild puppies are often left for long periods of time in the den. They are far more capable of sustaining themselves than a human infant is, we are very fragile as youngsters compared to many other species. And you don't think we don't take our children to adoption agencies or let them just get so out of control that the state has to take them, think again ! Unfortunately you are correct on one of your assertions. We do euthanize pets when their needs outstrip our budgets, however luckily for humans we have to treat everyone who walks in our doors hence such high medical costs and crowded ER's. However even WE had a time when unless you could pay....you didn't get treated.

I work in an animal ER, There are owners who decide to euthanize their pets because they really do care for them and do want them to suffer. There are also "other" types.

People euthanize their pets because the pets become a burden to care for when they get sick. I've heard things like, "Oh, I just can't give him pills. He hates them. I love my cat and I don't want to do this, but there's just no way it would work."

I can see the same thing happening with people. I can see people feeling pressured to chose euthanasia because their illness is draining their loved ones, physically, financially or emotionally.

In an ideal world, euthanasia would make sense, but our world is not ideal. There are people who kill their husbands/wives/children and more than a few crooked doctors out there.

Suicide is something that should be done alone, or not at all, IMHO. I agree with the person who said we should focus more on not prolonging suffering with futile treatments.

why do you think there are hospice programs in the us? it allow patient themselves or family members to let go of their loved ones but without physical, psychological, and spiritual agony and allow patient to be as pain free as possible.

Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
I work in an animal ER, There are owners who decide to euthanize their pets because they really do care for them and do want them to suffer. There are also "other" types.

People euthanize their pets because the pets become a burden to care for when they get sick. I've heard things like, "Oh, I just can't give him pills. He hates them. I love my cat and I don't want to do this, but there's just no way it would work."

I can see the same thing happening with people. I can see people feeling pressured to chose euthanasia because their illness is draining their loved ones, physically, financially or emotionally.

In an ideal world, euthanasia would make sense, but our world is not ideal. There are people who kill their husbands/wives/children and more than a few crooked doctors out there.

Suicide is something that should be done alone, or not at all, IMHO. I agree with the person who said we should focus more on not prolonging suffering with futile treatments.

Actually, you did bring more food for thought to me, because I didn't think of it that way. There may be more people who may just want to rid themselves of the guilt and burden of caring for a sick person.

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