Death and suffering

Death and suffering

Death and Suffering: Where should the line be drawn?
Physician-assisted suicide has been a controversial issue for decades.   Should a person be granted the choice to choose when it is time to die? Should we require a person to continue living when that person’s quality of life has been reduced to being bed ridden and/or feed through a tube? When a person is in so much pain and agony a simple walk across the room is torture. Where should the line be drawn?
In the United States, Oregon is the only state that has legalized physician-assisted suicide. The people of Oregon passed “The Death with Dignity Act”, in 1997. From 1998 through the end of 2005, 246 people have elected to die by taking a lethal dose of medication prescribed by their physician. Some of the underlying illnesses of these patients were cancers such as lung and bronchus, breast, pancreas, colon, prostate and ovary. According to Peg Sandeen, the Executive Director of the Death with Dignity National Center, “The very existence of Oregon’s Death with Dignity law gives comfort and peace of mind to terminally-ill patients at life’s end – regardless of whether or not they choose to use it. Equally encouraging is how the law continues to serve as a catalyst for improvements in care for the dying” (Death With Dignity National Center, 2007, para.9).
Such was the case of Steve Mason. Mr. Mason was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. The 65-year-old writer was prescribed a lethal dose of Nembutal, a form of barbiturates. He had decided that when the time comes where he can longer function, he would use this prescription to end his life (Roosevelt, 2005).
“He will give away his belongings and say his goodbyes. “It will be a celebration of life,” Mason predicts. “I’d like to hear Satchmo singing What a Wonderful World,” When he actually swallows the potion, he expects to slip into unconsciousness and die within minutes. “I’ve lived my life with dignity,” he says. “I want to...