what is euthanasia??

Answer 1

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Euthanasia is the process of painlessly helping a terminally ill person to die. Known also as assisted suicide or mercy killing, euthanasia is illegal for humans in the United States. Generally, euthanasia is performed by lethal injection, using the same drugs as those on death row are executed.

Hyppocrates, the father of modern medicine, stated in 400 B.C., "I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel". Today, doctors are still bound by this oath. The first law, or statute, enacted in America was entered in the books in New York in 1828.

Like abortion, the debate about assisted suicide is a heated one. Many argue that quality of life is an issue, while those on the other side believe life must be preserved at all costs. The arguments from both sides are of both moral and legal ramifications. Proponents of assisted suicide believe that the church and state have no right to interfere with a person's right to die. Opponents voice the opposite opinion; that no one but God has the authority to determine when a person is to die.

The Hemlock Society is very vocal in their belief that euthanasia should be allowed, especially if the patient has conveyed those wishes. Very few stand on the middle of the road on this issue. Most religions and medical professionals are opposed to euthanasia.

The topic was brought to the forefront of public opinion with the trial of Doctor Jack Kevorkian in the late 1990s. He was sentenced to 10-25 years in prison for the murder of Thomas Youk after giving him a lethal injection.

Several foreign countries including the Netherlands and Belgium allow euthanasia to be performed on patients if certain conditions, such as chronic pain associated with an incurable illness, are met.

Animals, especially dogs and cats, are routinely and humanely put to death in many animal shelters when homes for them cannot be found. It is also a common practice for owners of elderly pets to have their beloved animal put down when their pain makes the dog or cat's life unbearable. Farmers have always practiced putting any animal out of their misery, when they know the animal cannot be healed.

Euthanasia is a volatile issue for many, especially as the baby boomer generation ages. Living wills can be drafted for those who do not wish to be kept alive by extraordinary means in the event of terminal illness or brain death. A living will is a simple document that can be drawn up by you or with the help of an attorney.

Answer 2

Euthanasia is also called "mercy killing." It is the practice of ending the terminal suffering for someone out of compassion rather than other motives. It may take the form of assisted suicide in which the dying person is provided the means to end their own life, or may be actively done, such as giving a dose of narcotics intended to be lethal.

The practice varies from the extralegal tactics of Dr. Kevorkian, the famous "death doctor" who rigged up suicide machines for those supposedly terminally ill at their own request, to legal euthanasia in some localities when physicians are allowed to give lethal doses of drugs to the dying. Some consider taking a hopeless patient or even a legally brain dead individual off life support to be euthansia.

Answer 3

Euthanasia (from Greek: ευθανασία -ευ, eu, "good", θανατος, thanatos, "death") is the practice of ending the life of a person or an animal because they are perceived as living an intolerable life, in a painless or minimally painful way either by lethal injection, drug overdose, or by the withdrawal of life support. Euthanasia is a controversial issue because of conflicting religious and humanist views.

Answer 4

Man I wish this answer was going to be on the first page of answers... because, while the "mercy killing" answers and the dictionary definitions are completely correct, it is absolutely NOT the same thing as Physician Assisted Suicide.

Euthanasia is ACTIVELY engaging in the act of killing--animal, human, whatever. (We do euthanize animals every day, for a variety of reasons, including mercy, but also because of useless, selfish, human reasons.) For humans, it may be nice to think of it as "for merciful reasons" there is a slippery slope of consent (of the person being killed) and for what reasons such actions may be acceptable.

Who decides what these reasons are and to whom they will apply? Will they always apply in all situations or will we have to make individual judgements on a case-by-case basis--can our medical system support such a burden? And who would want to make such choices?

Physician Assisted Suicide is merely medical help (advice, care, medicines, etc) for people terminal situations to have options about the final moments of their life. The medical community does NOT actively engage in the ending of life beyond the above and the proscribing of pharmaceuticals that ASSIST the person in SUICIDE. It is not killing, for merciful reasons or any other. No one makes the choices but the person actually dying.

The Netherlands and the state of Oregon have been practicing Physician Assisted Suicide for many years, with interesting and ethically promising results. Jack Kevorkian is still in jail (I'm pretty sure) for practicing active euthanasia on people with terminal illnesses. He said (and I believe) that he was doing it for merciful reasons, but it remains illegal.

So much more to say, so little time...

Answer 5

The practice of ending the life of a person or an animal because they are perceived as living an intolerable life, in a painless or minimally painful way either by lethal injection, drug overdose, or by the withdrawal of life support.

Answer 6

It's killing animals, especially pets, for whatever reason ("putting them to sleep").

It's killing a person at that person's request, especially if they're terminally ill and in constant pain. This is usually done with an overdose of morphine or some other painkiller.

Answer 7

It's a drug used to humanely put animals to death. It's also a term used for the act of ending any living things life to prevent further suffering of said living thing.

Answer 8

Euthanasia

Euthanasia (from Greek: ευθανασία -ευ, eu, "good", θανατος, thanatos, "death") is the practice of ending the life of a person or an animal because they are perceived as living an intolerable life, in a painless or minimally painful way either by lethal injection, drug overdose, or by the withdrawal of life support. Euthanasia is a controversial issue because of conflicting religious and humanist view

Terminology
Euthanasia as a topic is often highly-charged—emotionally, politically, and morally. Terminology and laws shift over time, geographically and globally, causing a great deal of confusion.

Debate exists as how to precisely define euthanasia. According to the narrow definition only acts of killing, where a definite action is taken to end the patient's life, constitutes euthanasia. In a more broad definition, both direct killing and "allowing a patient to die," where the steps needed to preserve a life are simply not taken, would constitute euthanasia. The moral importance of this distinction is that if one uses the narrow distinction, allowing someone to die does not constitute euthanasia and one may argue that all acts of euthanasia are inherently wrong.

Following the broad definition of euthanasia as outlined by James Rachels, euthanasia may employ methods that are active or passive. Active euthanasia refers to a physician painlessly putting to death some persons suffering from incurable conditions or diseases. Passive euthanasia, in contrast, refers to any act of allowing the patient to die, which may include failing to provide necessary medication as well as taking a patient off life support. Both active and passive euthanasia can be voluntary, nonvoluntary or involuntary. (See Karl Binding and Alfred Hoche for one of the first uses of the three types of euthanasia.)

Physician assisted suicide is where doctors assist terminally ill patients in taking their own life. This is often seen as morally distinct from euthanasia because the physician does not directly cause the patient's death but enables the patient to choose the time and circumstances of his or her own death.

Voluntary euthanasia occurs with the fully-informed request of a decisionally-competent adult patient or that of their surrogate (proxy). (Example: Thomas Youk with ALS was assisted by Jack Kevorkian.) This should not be confused with death after treatment is stopped on the instructions of the patient himself, either directly or through a do not resuscitate (DNR) order. Enforcing a DNR order has never been considered assisted suicide or suicide of any kind, at least in the eyes of the law. Patients of sound mind have always had a right to refuse treatment.

Nonvoluntary euthanasia occurs without the fully-informed consent and fully-informed request of a decisionally-competent adult patient or that of their surrogate (proxy). An example of this might be if a "patient" has decisional capacity but is not told they will be euthanized; or, if a patient is not conscious or lacks decisional-capacity and their surrogate is not told the patient will be euthanized.

Involuntary euthanasia occurs over the objection of a patient or their surrogate (proxy). An example of this might be if a patient with decisional capacity (or their surrogate) is told what will happen. The patient (or surrogate) refuses yet the patient is euthanized anyway. This is generally considered murder. If a patient slated for euthanasia changes his or her mind at the last minute, the doctor is categorically required by law to honor that wish. In most other countries removing or denying treatment without the clear instructions of the patient is usually seen as murder.[citation needed]

Terminal sedation is a combination of medically inducing a deep sleep and stopping other treatment, with the exception of medication for symptom control (such as analgesia). It is considered to be euthanasia by some, but under current law and medical practice it is considered a form of palliative care.

Animal euthanasia is commonly referred to by the euphemism "put to sleep".

Mercy Killing is a term used for some cases of euthanasia. Typically it refers to euthanasia by a non-doctor, such as a parent, who perceives the individual to be suffering. In some cases the individual cannot consent. In some cases the individual can consent but is not asked or refuses. Lastly, in some cases the individual consents, and it may even be them who initiates the discussion.


Eugenics described as euthanasia
In Nazi Germany the term euthanasia was misused for the T-4 Euthanasia Program, which was actually a eugenics project. The objectives were to save expense and to preserve the genetic quality of the German population by killing those considered unworthy of life and sterilizing those considered unfit to breed. Since it was not for the benefit of the victims, it does not fit the definition of euthanasia as merciful. It has nevertheless tainted the word, especially in German-speaking countries, as one of the main advocates of euthanasia in Germany after World War II was Werner Catel, a leading Nazi doctor directly involved in T-4. The currently accepted German term is the older "Sterbehilfe" (literally "helping to die"), which is used in contemporary German discussions.

Answer 9

Also called mercy killing. the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, a person or animal suffering from an incurable, esp. a painful, disease or condition

Answer 10

When a doctor helps a patient to die, by use of chemicals, most likely, because the patient has a chronic or life-threatening disease and simply wishes to die rather than live it out.