Euthanasia

Just imagine. If you were brain dead, what would you do? Would you continue to live in that state or would you want to be euthanized? There are a lot of patients with incurable diseases in the world who suffer from extreme pain. In that case, when they or their family agree, the action that shortens their lives without pain is called ‘Euthanasia‘. This has caused serious ethical problems for physicians. I watched a video about a doctor who killed his patient who really wanted to be free from serious pain. After watching the video, I thought that the doctor was a murder, but the patient himself really wanted to die. Then, is he a murder? Since that then, I am still confused about what is right.

Some terminal patients have to depend on medical instruments and medicine to combat against severe pain everyday. That’s why some people who are physicians, religious and ethicists think that they would rather choose an easy death without pain than continue to live with pain until they are dead. Futhermore, if they donate their internal organs such as heart or kidney, other many patients will be able to get an opportunity of the new life.

On the other hand, other many people don’t agree with the euthanasia because they think the patients also have a right to live and suecide is a crime. In addition, The most fundamental responsibility of the doctors is to save the patients not kill them. Also, although they will not be able to recover from their diseases, they have an obligation to live until they die.

Almost countries including Korea accept it as a crime. However, Vatican authorities have said they would accept euthanasia, but with some conditions. Also, some countries such as Netherland, Belgium and Switzerland have already accepted it. There are still a lot of opinions about euthanasia. I cannot decide which is better or right. Just I think that it is important not only to choose how to live but also how to die.