When is withdrawing life sustaining treatment not euthanasia?
Withdrawing life-sustaining treatment because it’s in the person’s best interests can be part of good palliative care and is not euthanasia. If you are approaching the end of your life, you have a right to good palliative care – to control pain and other symptoms – as well as psychological, social and spiritual support. You can find out more about:
When does a doctor give a patient euthanasia?
For example, it could be considered euthanasia if a doctor deliberately gave a patient with a terminal illness drugs they do not otherwise need for their comfort, such as an overdose of sedatives or muscle relaxant, with the sole aim of ending their life.
What’s the difference between assisted and self-administered euthanasia?
Self-administered euthanasia: the patient administers the means of death. Other-administered euthanasia: a person other than the patient administers the means of death. Assisted: the patient administers the means of death but with the assistance of another person, such as a physician.
What are the arguments for and against euthanasia?
Advocates of active euthanasia typically argue that killing the patients in question is not worse than letting them die. Advocates of voluntary euthanasia often claim that patients should have the right to do what they want with their own lives.
When is the right time to make a decision about euthanasia?
Making a decision about whether or when the time is right for euthanasia is one of the hardest things someone loving a pet will ever go through. Unlike human medicine, veterinary medicine is fortunate to be able to legally offer the option of gently ending suffering when there seems to be no hope for recovery.
How to deal with guilt after euthanasia of a cat?
For several days after the vet gently stopped my 20-year-old cat Hedda’s heart, I couldn’t get past the feeling that Hedda didn’t want to die, or at least, she wanted it to happen in her own time, naturally. I had been one of those people who was adamant that I would not choose euthanasia unless I believed Hedda felt death would be preferable.
Is it hard for a vet to do euthanasia?
Vets feel very connected to their patients and it is hard for us too. But there are times that euthanasia can be a blessing to end suffering, and it really is the best choice in those circumstances. Like anything else, the process of euthanasia is part of my job and you can get used to doing it.
Which is an example of an active euthanasia?
Active euthanasia is when death is brought about by an act – for example when a person is killed by being given an overdose of pain-killers. This usually refers to cases where the person who is going to die needs help to kill themselves and asks for it.