What is the difference between deciding to put a patient away because of pain or putting them away because?

Question

they no longer are able to communicate?

Answer 1

1.) Patients are NOT euthanized because "they are no longer able to communicate"!
2.) Patients are NOT euthanized because "of pain"!
3.) Current U.S. law forbids euthanasia - it is a Federal crime, as well as a state crime.

4.) HOWEVER: As a practical matter, patients have been euthanized for many, many years (usually by a morphine or another opiate overdose) when the patient meets all of these criteria :
a.) Terminally ill, with absolutely no hope of recovery OR the patient's brain is totally non-functional with no hope of recovery
AND
b.) In excruciating pain, even with high-dose pain meds
AND
c.) The patient requests euthanasia (or, if the patient is unconscious, the patient's closest family - usually the spouse or parent agree upon euthanasia).
AND
d.) The patient (or family member) usually must make the request several times and not appear to be pressured by financial, family or any other outside concerns
AND
d.) The medical staff can ascertain no ethical conflict that might bias that family member's decision (e.g., that family member achieves no monetary gain, such as an inheritance).
AND
e.) That the patient is not suffering from depression or some other mental illness (usually determined by at least 2 physicians, 1 usually a psychiatrist), but rather than the patient has clearly articulated and justifiable (to the patient) reasons.

At least that is the procedure we used to follow - and even then, very few request for patients were carried out. Only VERY rarely was it done.

Answer 2

There is a very fine line between euthanasia and murder.

Pain with no prospect for relief might well be euthanasia.

There are too many reasons for not being able to communicate -- and the whole label of "put a patient away" is a bit unclear.

Putting a patient away also can refer to forced care in an asylum, sanitorium or other mandated health care facility.

I think in the failure to communicate scenario brain activity should be the primary indicator for "putting someone away".

Answer 3

Right off the bat, they should both be legally treated the same as forms of euthanasia. Yet in the first case the patient should be aware of the situation, whereas the latter would be a much more complicated case, as no one is certain what goes on in that patient's mind while unable to communicate. However, if a patient is terminally ill, such as that in an advanced stage of cancer, he or she can petition to sign a document that prohibits staff at a hospital from attending to them if they are about to die, and or try to perform resuscitation techniques on them.