Doctor's Dilemma (Euthanasia)

Salam and hi..

ACtually just wanna share with all of you the article that i wrote not because of what i really interested in but it's a requirement to get the credit in Medical Psychology. But after all, I realized that writing an article is quite interesting BUT need to have a lot of vocabulary in order to make it more interesting :) SO, here u are. All about Euthanasia in MY POINT OF VIEW

Nowadays, besides work in the office and manage their medical profession in a better way, the doctors also need to think on the other side. I mean, in patient’s side. What the major problems of patients, their feeling when they faced you, what are their impressions when they first meet a doctor, and anything else that relate to the patient-doctor’s relationship.

These are what we called doctor’s dilemma. There are many dilemmas faced by our doctors nowadays. But I would like to write about quite a worldwide problems nowadays which are Euthanasia.

As a medical student‘s point of view, I can defined Euthanasia as the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit. The key word here is "intentional". If death is not intended, it is not an act of Euthanasia.

I can divide Euthanasia into 3 types. The first one are voluntary Euthanasia; when the person who is killed has requested to be killed. And the second one are non-voluntary; when the person who is killed made no request and gave no consent. The 3rd one are assisted suicide; someone provides an individual with the information, guidance, and means to take his or her own life with the intention that they will be used for this purpose. When it is a doctor who helps another person to kill themselves it is called "physician assisted suicide."

All these 3 types include not commencing treatment that would not provide a benefit to the patient, withdrawing treatment that has been shown to be ineffective, too burdensome or is unwanted, and the giving of high doses of pain-killers that may endanger life.

Sometimes the voluntary Euthanasia will be assume as involuntary Euthanasia. They look at things as simply black and white. In real life there would be millions of situations each year where cases would not fall clearly into either category. For example, an elderly person in a nursing home, who can barely understand a breakfast menu, is asked to sign a form concerning to be killed. Is this voluntary or involuntary? Will they be protected by the law? How? Right now the overall prohibition on killing stands in the way. Once one signature can sign away a person's life, what can be as strong a protection as the current absolute prohibition on direct killing? Answer: nothing.

The people who will make Euthanasia to the patient will not think any details and don’t show any concern to the patient. This is simply like they don’t have any feeling of empathy. I would say that if they are in the patient’s side, they will feel very bad about it because it involves the matter of dying.

Some people might think that all those are part of good medical practice, endorsed by law, when they are properly carried out. They support the Euthanasia’s action because they think that it provides a way to relieve extreme pain, it provides a way of relief when a person's quality of life is low and frees up medical funds to help other people. People who support Euthanasia often say that it is already considered permissable to take human life under some circumstances such as self defense - but they miss the point that when one kills for self defense they are saving innocent life - either their own or someone else's.

With Euthanasia, no one's life is being saved - life is only taken.

I found one quote from Wesley J. Smith, senior fellow at the Discovery Institute regarding Euthanasia which said:

"...drugs used in assisted suicide cost only about $40, but that it could take $40,000 to treat a patient properly so that they don't want the "choice" of assisted suicide..." ...

From the above quote, I would like to give a statement so that you can think about it. What is the value of money compared to the one’s life which as we know, we can find the money by many sources but we can not find one’s life using the money. Think about it.

Also from Joseph Stalin said that:

"Death solves all problems...no man, no problem."

However, for me as a medical student generally and Muslim brother specifically, I would say that Euthanasia is never allowed in our religion. The reasons behind it was, since we did not create ourselves we do not own our bodies. We are entrusted with them for care and safe-keeping. God is the owner and giver of life and His rights in giving and in taking are not to be violated. Or in the other words; Euthanasia devalues human life. Attempting to kill oneself is a crime in Islam as well as a grave sin. The Quran says: "Do not kill (or destroy) yourselves, for verily Allah has been to you most Merciful" (Quran 4:29). To warn against suicide Prophet Mohammad said: "Whoever kills himself with an iron instrument will be carrying it forever in hell. Whoever takes poison and kills himself will forever keep sipping that poison in hell. Whoever jumps off a mountain and kills himself will forever keep falling down in the depths of hell."

               Not only in Islamic point of view, In Christian point of view, they also said that Euthanasia is not allowed in their religion. As a prove, I brought here a quote from Pope John Paul II, 2004 said that:

"A man, even if seriously sick or prevented in the exercise of its higher functions, is and will be always a man ... [he] will never become a 'vegetable' or an 'animal,'" the Pope said. "The intrinsic value and personal dignity of every human being does not change depending on their circumstances.“ ...

Also from the most famous physician or known as Father of Medicine

– Hippocrates in his Hippocratic Oath said that:

“I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest

any such counsel“

Here, I can conclude that, there are no absolute reasons to allow Euthanasia to be done to the patient. No matter how unbearable pain the patient suffered or demanding a right to commit-suicide, the physician should continue with the proper treatment and give moral supports to them so that they have a high determination to continue their life in an enjoyable way .

The Beauty Within..

An elderly Chinese woman,,
had two large pots.


Each hung on the ends of a pole,,
which she carried across her neck.


One of the pots had a crack in it,,


While the other pot was perfect,,
and always delivered a full portion of water.

At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.


For a full two years this went on daily,

with the woman bringing home,,
only one and a half pots of water.


Of course, the perfect pot,,
was proud of its accomplishments.


But the poor cracked pot,,
was ashamed of its own imperfection,


And miserable that it could only,,
do half of what it had been made to do.


After two years of what,,
it perceived to be bitter failure,

It spoke to the woman one day by the stream.


I am ashamed of myself,


because this crack in my side causes water,,
to leak out all the way back to your house.


The old woman smiled,


Did you notice that there are flowers,,


On your side of the path,,
but not on the other pot's side?


That's because,,
I have always known about your flaw,

So I planted,,
flower seeds on your side of the path,


And every day,,
while we walk back, you water them.


For two years I have been able to pick,,


these beautiful flowers to decorate the table.


Without you being just the way you are,


there would not be,,
this beauty to grace the house.


Each of us has our own unique flaw.


But it's the cracks and flaws we each have,,


that make our lives together ,,
so very interesting and rewarding.

You've just got to take,,
each person for what they are,


And look for the good in them.


SO,to all of my crackpot friends,

have a great day and remember to smell,,
the flowers on your side of the path!

*credit to bro mirgani*

O Allah !

Oh My Lord!
I came at your door step with a silent voice,
having no virtue in hand but a pile of sins.
Though under the darkness of bad deeds but with the light of Repentance.
I have storm in my heart and my heart broken into hundreds of pieces with shame.
But your court is full of blessing and hope.
Moon and stars envy even to a tiny particle of your home.
Forgive the greatness of my sins with little of your mercy before I leave your court.