Argumentative essay on assisted suicide

Abstract

The paper discusses briefly the sensitive societal issue of assisted suicide which is legalized in a few states only by majoring on the pros. The physician-assisted suicide should be legalized in all the states as I explain some reasons to justify my standpoint. One of them is that it helps in reducing pain and suffering to the terminally ill patients. My discussion is supported by six paraphrased articles. It should be noted that these patients have the right to die and their wishes should be respected because the pain and suffering are unbearable.

Introduction

The topic is of much interest to me because of the never ending debate as to whether to legalize assisted suicide or criminalize it. I know that suicide is globally accepted as a tragedy but can be prevented, and that is why there are health professionals mandated with saving and protection of lives. Assisted suicide also is known as physician-assisted suicide is carried out with the aid of the physician after self-administration from the person (McDougall & Gorman, 2008). In my personal opinion, I give the nod to assisted suicide because it mainly reduces prolonged suffering and pain for those who have terminal illnesses. This topic on assisted suicide is of personal importance to me because I have experienced a family member, and a close friend undergo unnecessary pain on sickbed but eventually died naturally after undergoing too much suffering. This paper discusses the pros of assisted suicide intertwined with personal perspectives on the same with quick references to six selected and credible articles.

A close family friend died of a terminal disease by the name Alzheimer a couple of years ago. He always wished that his life is terminated by the physicians attending to him, but the family was against that idea. Likewise, the state he resided in does not legalize assisted suicide. Also, my cousin died just a year ago from blood cancer after undergoing years of pain and suffering. My argument is this, why should patients be taken through this torturous journey when it is imminent that they will eventually die sooner rather than later? It is with this backdrop that I propose for the legalization of assisted suicide in all the states. According to Frellick & Vega (2016), it is observed that patients with terminal or serious illnesses need to have freedom over control of their bodies. The article which is found on the Medscape website is incisive in articulating both the pros and cons of assisted suicide. I agree with its pros points because there is a need for other states to join California, Washington, Oregon, and California among a few others in legalizing assisted suicide. I have ever been in hospital undergoing a particular illness that made me experience a very excruciating pain for two weeks. I cannot imagine someone else going through the same or even worse pain for days, months, and years before they die. It is fair enough with the consent of the patient that they are allowed to rest or die in a dignified manner. Therefore, everyone has a right to die and that liberty should not be curtailed.

It is reported that the majority of Americans are of the view that assisted death should be legalized and thus the choice should be made available to them (McDougall & Gorman, 2008).This article is sourced from an eBook ABC-CLIO. If a bigger percentage of the population supports the idea, why should some states go against the wish of the majority? Someone’s choice of ending life is their prerogative, and the state should provide a favorable environment for the same to be realized. According to Henig (2015), the article highlights the decision by Sandy to terminate her life eventually. The New York Times’ article accessed from its website confirms that the person being case-studied made the design by herself without coercion. That should be the way forward especially if a person’s health is drastically deteriorating.

It is said that for an individual to be administered assisted suicide, they should have a terminal illness with six months or less to live (CNN, 2017). The article from the CNN website is reliable in providing fast facts about assisted suicide. I do uphold the statistics presented in the article that indicates a huge number of deaths being reported by people choosing to end their lives. That is a sure proof that the idea of assisted suicide is a reality and popular among the people. The majority of family members undergo prolonged distress regarding taking care of these patients as well as psychological and financial challenges.

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Patients with a terminal illness should be assisted to fulfill their personal goals of ending their lives if need be (Boudreau, 2011).This article obtained from NCBI resources is against the idea of assisted suicide and euthanasia. The author needs to understand that physicians are not only mandated to protect and save lives but also be human to share the pains and concerns of the patients under their care. I believe it is inhuman to stare at someone dying gradually and in a painful manner.

Both sides of the divide have got different assumptions about assisted suicide(Raphel,2012). In this journal article sourced from journalists’ resources website, it is reported from most studies that terminally ill patients prefer to be assisted with death so as to reduce the physical suffering. I cannot water down this fact as it is true that these patients undergo extreme pain and it is unethical not to be granted their wish to die under such circumstances.

In my conclusion, the discussion confirms my beliefs about assisted suicide that it is quite in order for states to provide laws that support assisted suicide. The patient has the right to be listened to and not to be told what to do especially when it is imminent they are going to die. The presentation in this paper is beneficial to various stakeholders in countries that do not support assisted suicide to think otherwise. The message can sink deeper into the minds of the population, the government, and civil societies groups, religious and political leaders among others to support legalization of the same.