On that note, my gramma-in-law is pissed(& in agony) right now because her DNR was not respected. She is 95yo and suffered a stroke 2 weeks ago. She spent the last 9 months rehabbing a broken hip and said she would not choose to do it again. She is currently drugged to the gills, mostly paralyzed and still manages to cuss & plead for mercy.
Dr Jack Kevorkian should have been lauded, instead he was given jail.
That strikes me as the most pragmatic, and humane option. For me, the option itself is the most important, and I think it should be available for all.
If, like when my father was dying slowly of cancer, there comes a point when it is clearly no fun any more, I want an option to exit. If I'm still finding life worth living maybe I'll never actually hit the exit button and go quietly in my sleep.
What I really want is more approachable Euthanasia. I’m not afraid of dying, it will happen to all of us, but I dont want for me or my relatives a months of pain when everyone knows it will only lead to death.
If it would ever happen to me, I'd prefer ending it myself when I reach the end of the line. Just a few weeks ago a local elder couple did the same thing here. I do understand it's easy for me to say as I at least have a choice to end it with the assistance of doctors.
This reminds me of a particular article[1] I read on HN on how doctors themselves prefer to approach end-of-life care and the disconnect between the treatment patients and their families usually opt for.
This is fantastic news. I can't but think of the many people that have contemplated assisted suicide that were in his position. This should give them hope.
Poster shouldn't have called it an "easy button", but I think there should be one surviving comment on here that stands in opposition to euthanasia, so I'll just leave this here:
Indeed. And the mother of friend of mine had to search for her own slippery slope so she could fall out of a window to end her life to end the constant pain of the tumors in her bones.
I had the relatively good luck of having my parents die quick and clean death - but still there were traumas that needed years to heal. My father spend in vegetative state only 48 hours - and the load was unbearable. Having to live with that for months or years - I am sure that no person would like to cause that to their children and relatives.
Ending the suffering soon is good for the patient, but is even better for the ones they loved. I don't want to burden anyone when my time comes and I insist on the right of going away the way I want to and not the way fate decides.
I'm not sure that I agree with your belief that voluntary termination (I prefer that term over euthanasia) can ever be clean. It is a process that is necessarily fraught with pain, even if that pain isn't visible on the outside. I'd like to believe that no doctor would take such a decision lightly, but that of course is hard to ascertain.
I do agree with your sentiment about the ethicists. The article paints a picture like the review boards and experts are closing ranks against the "outside world". It's somewhat understandable given that these are considered hard-won "victories" by the humanist camp and still under constant pressure, but it reduces transparency in an area that absolutely requires both transparency and accountability. It's almost like regulatory capture: it encourages practitioners to play it fast and loose knowing they will be backed, and that should not be allowed.
However, in this particularly case: I understand it can be very hard for next-of-kin to learn that someone close has chosen to die, and that they were not involved in the process. I've watched it happen twice from somewhat nearby, and I certainly hope never to experience it any closer. The anger, hurt and guilt from not being included in such a life-altering decision can be enormous.
At the same time, I don't see how drawing more people into the situation should be up to the physician; that choice too should be squarely in the patient's hands. For me it is enough that the doctor suggested she should contact her children.
For me, the bigger question is why these doctors felt qualified to assess her wish: it does not sound like any of the doctors that approved her request had more than a cursory involvement in her (long-term) treatment.
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