Euthanasia

(Mercy Killing)

Presented by : Mousumi Chowdhury

Ritu Halder Munmun Mallik

•Definition

From Greek word Eu = good, nice, merciful and facilitated Tathanos = death or killing Linguistically = ‘merciful’ death or

killing or ‘good’ or facilitated death Modern science = facilitating the death

of an incurable patient at his own pressing request presented to the treating physician.

•People who are involved…

Patient in permanent vegetative state

who is awake and kept alive on artificial

life support (respirators, heart-lung

machine and IV nutrition)

Patient in terminal ill and may not be

subject to any life support machines

•Types of euthanasia

Passive

Letting a person die by taking no action to maintain his/her life.Withdrawing medical or surgical procedures and life support system.

Active

An act of commission by taking action that leads to death – fatal injection

•Conditions that leads to euthanasia

An individual is considered dead in one of the following two situations: Complete irreversible cessation of

respiratory and cardiovascular systems.

Complete irreversible cessation of the functions of the brain including the brain stem.

It provides a way torelieve extreme pain

It provides a way of reliefwhen a person's qualityof life is low

Frees up medical fundsto help other people

Cons

Euthanasia devalues human life Euthanasia can become a means

of health care cost containment Physicians and other medical care

people should not be involved in directly causing death

In case of brain death it is required to have the presence of a reliable medical specialist well experienced in the clinical diagnosis of brain and brain stem death and the various implications of such diagnosis.  

The team comprises two specialists with experience in diagnosing brain death.  One of the two doctors of the team should be a specialist in neurology, neurosurgery or intensive care.

If  a number of medical experts determine that a patient is in a terminal condition, and there is no hope for his/her recovery and all medications have become useless, then it permissible for them, through a collective decision, to stop the medication.

Fatwa of Prominent Muslim Scholar Sheikh Yusof Al-Qaradawi

Euthanasia is Islamically forbidden for it encompasses a positive role on the part of the physician to end the life of the patient and hasten his death via lethal injection, electric shock, a sharp weapon or any other way. This is an act of killing, and, killing is a major sin and thus forbidden in Islam, the religion of pure mercy.

As for the suspension of medical treatment via preventing the patient from his due medication which is, from a medical perspective, thought to be useless, this is permissible and sometimes it is even recommended. Thus, the physician can do this for the sake of the patient’s comfort and the relief of his family.

Nancy Cruzan lost control of her car one day in January 1983 in Missouri. When the paramedics arrived, they were able to restore her breathing and heartbeat and she was transported, unconscious, to hospital. She continued to be fed through a surgically- implanted gastrostomy tube. After several years, a court found that, although her respiration and circulation continued unaided, she was oblivious to her surroundings except for reflexive responses to sound and perhaps painful stimuli; her brain had degenerated, irreversibly; she was a spastic quadriplegic; she suffered contraction of her four extremities, with irreversible muscle and tendon damage; and had no cognitive or reflex ability to swallow food or water or to maintain her essential daily needs nor would she ever recover such an ability.

Chantal Sebire

Netherlands (Green), Oregon and Washington (Yellow), Belgium (Red)

The Sunday Times Magazine (London) reported that Dignitas's, Swiss suicide facilitating organization, founder, Ludwig Minelli, plans to create a chain of death centers "to end the lives of people with illnesses and mental conditions such as chronic depression."