PHLB09H3 Chapter : chp 10.docx
Document Summary
In euthanasia and physician assisted suicide, the bioethical heart of the matter is the moral rightness of killing or letting die for the good of the patient. Euthanasia can be characterized as directly or indirectly bringing about death of another person for the person"s sake. The term derives from the greek words meaning good death and evokes the idea that causing or contributing to someone"s end may bestow on that person a good. Death is usually considered an evil, perhaps the greatest evil, but many think it can be a blessing if it spares someone from a slow, horrific dying or a hopeless vegetative sleep. It involves performing an action that directly causes someone to die, what most people think of as mercy killing. Giving a patient a lethal injection to end his suffering is a case of active euthanasia. Allowing someone to die by not doing something that would prolong life.
