Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide What Are They?

In this blog I will be investigating how various ethnic groups in America respond to the practices of both euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. In addition, I will be examining whether or not the values of each culture encourage or discourage their use. Euthanasia in particular emerges as an important topic in any discussion of aging because research indicates that in fully 68.8% of cases where the practice of euthanasia has been utilized, the patient has been over the age of 65 (Oregon Health Authority, 2011).

Before beginning this discussion it is important that euthanasia and assisted suicide are clearly defined and understood. It must be noted that in most instances the data for both are combined so therefore for the purpose of my discussion I will be using the terms interchangeably at times. Keep in mind however that although the two are often interchanged, euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are not in fact the same. According to Merriam-Webster, euthanasia is “The act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy” (Merriam- Webster. Online). Merriam-Webster defines physician-assisted suicide as “Suicide by a patient facilitated by means (as a drug prescription) or by information (as an indication of a lethal dosage) provided by a physician aware of the patient's intent” (Merriam- Webster. Online). The distinction in these two lies in who is performing the act. In the case of euthanasia, the physician is performing the act with the intent of causing the patient’s death, albeit with the patient’s permission. An example might be a doctor administering a lethal injection at the patient’s request. In physician-assisted suicide on the other hand, the doctor is merely providing the means for a patient to commit suicide. The physician is not actually performing the act. In this situation, a physician might, for example, prescribe a lethal dose of medicine to a patient who would take then ingest it himself (Marker and Hamlon, 2011).

It is only recently that euthanasia or physician assisted-suicide have become legal. Currently, physician assisted suicide is only legal in Oregon, Montana, and Washington while euthanasia remains illegal in all parts of the United States (Marker and Hamlon, 2011). Physician-assisted suicide first became legal in Oregon in 1997 followed later by Washington and Montana. The first recorded account of euthanasia, while continuing to be illegal, was performed by Jack Kevorkian on June 4, 1990 to a woman named Janet Adkins who was 54 years old and in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Jack Kevorkian ended up spending time in prison as the result of this act (McLellan, 2011). In the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg one or both are currently legal. In addition, Switzerland allows euthanasia providing it is done without selfish motives (Marker and Hamlon, 2011).

Statistics from the state of Oregon indicate that of the 525 people to opt for physician assisted suicide in the years of 1998-2010, 53.7% have been male, and 46.3% have been female. A striking 97.9% have been Caucasian with only 1.3% of patients being Asian, and less than 1% being American Indian, African American, and Hispanic (Oregon Health Authority, 2011). Later blogs will further explore these statistics and how different ethnic group view both euthanasia and physician assisted suicide for the elderly of their community.

Marker, Rita L., and Kathi Hamlon. "Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: Frequently Asked Questions." Patients Rights Council. 2011. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. http://www.patientsrightscouncil.org/site/frequently-asked-questions/

McLellan, Dennis. "Jack Kevorkian: Physician-assisted Suicide Advocate Jack Kevorkian Dies at 83 - Los Angeles Times." The Los Angeles Times. 04 June 2011. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun/04/local/la-me-jack-kevorkian-20110604

"Charts on Kevorkian." Euthanasia Suicide Mercy-killing Right-to-die Physician Assisted Suicide Living Wills Research. Euthanasia.com. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. http://www.euthanasia.com/kevork.html.

"Euthanasia", “Physician-Assisted Suicide.” Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Merriam-Webster, 2012. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/euthanasia.

"Kevorkian’s Known Victims." Patients Rights Council. 2011. Web. 27 Jan. 2012. <http://www.patientsrightscouncil.org/site/kevorkian-victims/>.

Oregon Health Authority. Public Health. Oregon.gov. 7 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Jan. 2012. http://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Pages/index.aspx.