Euthanasia is an act that isn’t new. It has been carried out for hundreds of years. The word Euthanasia is basically derived from a Greek word which means “dignified death”. So, what do you think about Euthanasia? What actually is Euthanasia? Euthanasia is the act of deliberately and intentionally ending the life of a patient to relieve pain and suffering. It is also called Physician-assisted Murder. It is a topic that is actually debated heatedly around the world. Some consider it to be fine and some say it is wrong and should be banned.
On a personal note, I am among those who are against Euthanasia and consider it to be an immoral act because first of all, Euthanasia is a blow to the basic, intrinsic right and value of any person and that is “Life”. We came in this world to live, not to be killed or murdered, whether if it’s for medical reasons. Euthanasia, therefore, is against sanctity of life.
The major religions in the world are against it because God made us and only He can take our life away. No one else is entitled to do this task. Euthanasia, claimed by some as a medical procedure, is still murder. We all know “Murder is murder”. It doesn’t matter if it’s done by a serial killer, terrorist or doctor, it’s an act that deserves to be banned and those doing it should be prosecuted.
There have been many cases where Euthanasia has been misused, either due to lack of knowledge or due to personal issues. In Belgium, a woman suffering from Anorexia, an abnormality that can be treated, was euthanized. Similarly, twins who were deaf were also euthanized simply. Euthanasia gives doctors a lot of control over the lives of their patients. If a doctor is frustrated because of a failed surgery or something, he might euthanize his patients. They may also use it due to personal issues. It has also been shown that doctors nowadays are practicing Euthanasia at an increasing rate since it saves their time from doing hectic surgeries.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a legal document that encompasses various rights, is based around one point and that is the right to live. Euthanasia, therefore, takes away this very right. Hence, this legal document is breached by carrying out Euthanasia.
UN should impose strict sanctions in those countries were the murderous act of Euthanasia is legal. Euthanasia also has moral and mental consequences on the health workers who are carrying it out. Carrying out an act of murder isn’t as easy as it seems, it can create feelings of guilt and remorse in the person who is doing this “assisted murder”.
Hence, Euthanasia should be stopped otherwise many innocent souls will suffer from guilt and mental issues due to this heinous act in the future. With acts of Euthanasia around the world at a sky-high rate, people are starting to lose trust and faith in the health care system. They fear that they might also undergo Euthanasia and their lives might reach a full stop. In this way, patient-doctor trust is getting weak day by day.
Euthanasia is an economical and cheap procedure. Due to this, it is widely used around the world. An injection of Euthanasia costs 50$, while a chemotherapy injection costs up to 1000$. Hence, many health care officials push their patients to go for Euthanasia.
A case was reported in the US state of Oregon, where a woman was told by her Insurance company that they can’t pay for her treatment which could cost a lot and told her to go for Euthanasia since it is cheap. Governments and medical lobbyists around the world should decrease the prices of convenient and life-friendly procedures like Chemotherapy etc. so that patients can go for it and acts of Euthanasia can be decreased.
People who are in favor of Euthanasia say that it is not possible to save a person’s life that is on the edge of death cliff and about to fall into the abyss of death. So Euthanasia is the only option to finish their pains and sufferings. Well, what I think is that they are wrong.
Palliative care is an effective means and procedure to curb down the ailing of “about-to-die” patients. In Canada, 90% of health officials working in palliative care setups are against Euthanasia and are fully convinced that palliative care setups are beneficial and useful in treating terminally ill patients. People, who are vulnerable but suffer from mental issues and depression, are prone to Euthanasia. Constant thoughts like “I am useless”, “I should die” etc. among the young generation mostly along with external factors like bad and a negative circle of friends, constant demoralization from others pushes these people to get Euthanized. Thus, suicide rates are eventually increasing.
Therefore, we should counsel these people before they go for the murderous act of Euthanasia. Euthanasia is a worldwide issue, which is increasing day by day. In the Netherlands, 1923 Euthanasia acts were carried out in 2006, while in 2007, they increased to 2120 and in 2011, they rocketed to 4000. Even the Geneva International Hospital has reduced its palliative care set up and is now embracing Euthanasia. Thus, the world is moving towards the pro-euthanasia spectrum. We have to step up and propose an effective and riveting counter-narrative to it.
Intentionally ending the life of a patient should never be an excuse. We are born to live and see and visualize the world, not to be murdered by a so-called medical treatment. The field of medicine’s sole purpose and objective is to make sure that patients won’t die by medical practices but to make sure that patients live longer. Then why is Euthanasia considered as a medical treatment? Doesn’t it run counter to the objectives and aims of medicine? Any conscious human being, whether a medical official or a non-medical person, consider Euthanasia a heinous act and would seriously want this “so-called medical treatment “, which is an absurd concept, to end.
In a nutshell, palliative care setups should be improved and increased, because they are an effective method to treat terminally ill patients. Governments should keep a check on health officials that Euthanasia acts aren’t carried out. Strict punishments should be imposed if Euthanasia is done. Medical practitioners should be properly strained; their knowledge and surgical skills should be expanded so that they apply other methods instead of Euthanasia because it is an immoral act that takes away the lives of patients. Moreover, people become afraid of medical setups and start losing trust in the healthcare system. So it should be avoided and should be put to rest forever.
The writer is a student at National Defence University, Islamabad