The issue of assisting people to die at the end of their lives will always be controversial. According to the hemlock society euthanasia offers some control and dignity to those who are suffering at the end of their lives. This organization was started many years ago in a garage in California.
Derek Humphrey, who had assisted his terminally ill wife in her death, was the founder of this organization. The name was inspired by the fact that Socrates had weighed his options and made a choice to die by ingesting a tincture of the plant. The organization attracted a growing membership and local groups all over the nation began meeting and discussing end-of-life issues.
The organization adopted a multi-pronged approach. An important aspect of their activities was to try and change laws and to do this they became involved in the political arena. However, this proved to be a very slow process. Through the years, more and more attention was attracted to this issue. Jack Kervorkian and his machine, the Mercitron attracted attention worldwide. He eventually crossed the line and videotaped himself giving an ALS patient a lethal injection. The tape was aired on 60 minutes and he was eventually charged with second-degree murder.
Another way that more people were forced to think about the issue was through the publication of many books written by Derek Humphrey. Pamphlets, audio and video tapes were also used to educate people. A book called Final Exit made it onto the New York Times bestseller list. The first account of a physician assisting a patient with her death, was published in the New England Journal in 1991. Dr Timothy Quill described how he had given his terminally ill patient, Diane, barbiturates and told her how much she needed to take.
Several countries such as Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and more recently, Canada allow physician-assisted death for terminally ill patients. In America, a couple of other states have followed Oregon in passing right-to-die laws but patients must administer their own medications.
The struggle to have physician-assisted death legalized lead to research into non-medical ways to achieve a peaceful death. One of the most popular methods was the use of helium gas, made available in small kits. Recently, in 2015 Canada has passed a law legalizing physician-assisted death, following in the footsteps of Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
The original organization held many national conferences over the years, began a Patient Advocacy Program and provided much information in the form of pamphlets, books, video and audio tapes. Its quarterly magazine has become the largest of this type of publication in the Western Hemisphere. The national organization does not exist any more, although local chapters do still bear the name. It evolved into End-of-Life Choices and the organization is now called Compassion and Choices.
The organization is now known as Compassion and Choices and continues to advocate towards the openness and legitimacy of aid in death. They believe the patient should have final control and that all the available options should be presented to them. Working at having further laws passed also continues as many states in America still do not have such legislation in place.
Derek Humphrey, who had assisted his terminally ill wife in her death, was the founder of this organization. The name was inspired by the fact that Socrates had weighed his options and made a choice to die by ingesting a tincture of the plant. The organization attracted a growing membership and local groups all over the nation began meeting and discussing end-of-life issues.
The organization adopted a multi-pronged approach. An important aspect of their activities was to try and change laws and to do this they became involved in the political arena. However, this proved to be a very slow process. Through the years, more and more attention was attracted to this issue. Jack Kervorkian and his machine, the Mercitron attracted attention worldwide. He eventually crossed the line and videotaped himself giving an ALS patient a lethal injection. The tape was aired on 60 minutes and he was eventually charged with second-degree murder.
Another way that more people were forced to think about the issue was through the publication of many books written by Derek Humphrey. Pamphlets, audio and video tapes were also used to educate people. A book called Final Exit made it onto the New York Times bestseller list. The first account of a physician assisting a patient with her death, was published in the New England Journal in 1991. Dr Timothy Quill described how he had given his terminally ill patient, Diane, barbiturates and told her how much she needed to take.
Several countries such as Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and more recently, Canada allow physician-assisted death for terminally ill patients. In America, a couple of other states have followed Oregon in passing right-to-die laws but patients must administer their own medications.
The struggle to have physician-assisted death legalized lead to research into non-medical ways to achieve a peaceful death. One of the most popular methods was the use of helium gas, made available in small kits. Recently, in 2015 Canada has passed a law legalizing physician-assisted death, following in the footsteps of Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
The original organization held many national conferences over the years, began a Patient Advocacy Program and provided much information in the form of pamphlets, books, video and audio tapes. Its quarterly magazine has become the largest of this type of publication in the Western Hemisphere. The national organization does not exist any more, although local chapters do still bear the name. It evolved into End-of-Life Choices and the organization is now called Compassion and Choices.
The organization is now known as Compassion and Choices and continues to advocate towards the openness and legitimacy of aid in death. They believe the patient should have final control and that all the available options should be presented to them. Working at having further laws passed also continues as many states in America still do not have such legislation in place.
About the Author:
Welcome to our official web page where you can read more about hemlock society euthanasia. To get all the info you need, just click here http://fenregistration.org.
0 commentaires:
Enregistrer un commentaire