I was introduced to the idea of death with dignity years ago and was shown the film. However, prior to viewing it again and reading the provided articles, I feel that death with dignity is not a bad thing. I feel that everyone should have the freedom to make this decision if they want. For the rest of us, we have to put ourselves in that person’s shoes. We do not know how it feels to fight that hard to recover or how tolling the disease can be on our body. I think allowing these patients to make this decision will decrease the chance that they will carry it out on their own. 

After watching the film again and reading the articles, I am even more supportive of it. I learned more about the criteria patients need to meet in order to go through with this. I think this allows patients the freedom but also does not allow just anyone to carry through with it at any point in life, even if not terminally ill. In one of the articles, the patient had been suffering with brain cancer and once this became an option, he felt as though he had gotten more control over his life, something he lost when cancer took over. Individuals are also comforted by knowing they can prepare and get paperwork in order before passing. In addition, family members have reported that it helped them to remember their family member for who they were and not how sick they were when they pushed to the very end.  The only negative in my eyes is the stigma around the doctors that help with the process and support it. They are looked at as the ones to go to if you want to die. Personally, I do not agree with this. I know there is a lot of controversy but I think it is a positive to have doctors who support it because it provides patients with the comfort to inquire about physician assisted death. 

I do not feel that these doctors are harming their patients. I am thinking of the ethical principle of nonmaleficence and still, my belief does not change. This principle is focused on nurses not harming patients but rather protecting their safety. With physician assisted suicide (PAS), I still feel they are abiding by this. With the criteria in order to go through with it, doctors are only supporting the patient’s wishes in a way that is not harming them but rather helping them as they are terminally ill and have been evaluated as not living more than six months.