Benefits of Medical Assistance in Death

Benefits of Medical Assistance in Death

The Honorable Patty Hajdu

House of Commons

To The Honorable Patty Hajdu,

My name is (student name) I am writing to you in connection to the controversial debate on medical assistance in death (MAID) which has since been a significant topic in health. Many Canadians have debated the issue even after the Supreme Court’s ruling in favour of assisted death. Nonetheless, Medical assistance in death should maintain being legal in Canada.

Crucial among all issues is that patient autonomy remains an adamant feature in medical practice, allowing patients to forgo or elect medical interventions. Patient autonomy and consent on assistance in death primarily reflect the patient’s wishes and rights that should be respected (Dugdaleet al 2019). This is reflected in Ken Harrison’s case in the play ‘Whose Life is it Anyway?’ which shows his destitution after being permanently paralyzed.

Secondly, assistance in death provides a humane and compassionate way to end suffering for very ill patients. In his argument to defend the right to die, Ken Harrison explains how his present condition limits his abilities for normal functions depriving him of dignity and hence suffering. In a different controversial case, Robert Latimer defends his action of ending his severely disabled daughter’s life on the premise that she was undergoing too much suffering (Issa, 2019). According to him, medical interventions ranging from operations to being fed through pipes only translated to greater suffering that could only be ended through death. Finally, with the approval of Canada’s practice, assistance in death has yielded a safe medical practice option for the dying than suicide.

With that said, the greatest counter-argument is that the practice goes against the medical practitioner’s role in preserving life. Additionally, it opens up a leeway into a slippery slope of doctors’ role in hastening the end of life. While this might be true, it is outweighed by doctors’ role and the importance of ending suffering for patients. This is especially crucial for life-threatening illnesses that have no cure or treatment but leave patients languishing in misery. Therefore, medical assistance in death should maintain being legal.

Sincerely,

Name

Reference

Dugdale, L., Lerner, B., & Callahan, D. (2019). Focus: Death: Pros and cons of physician aid in dying. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6913818/

Issa, O. (2019, November 15). 25 years after conviction, Robert Latimer still believes he was right to kill his daughter. Retrieved from https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.5360711