Physician Aid-in-Dying is a practice that is legal in a number of states within the United States due to the passing of the Death With Dignity Act. Additional reading is present on this legislation in the topic readings. Please make sure to research this topic prior to beginning this assignment, as you will need to apply this research to your paper.
Case Study: Physician Aid-in-Dying in Portland, Oregon
A 35-year-old male named Zachary Davis has lived in and been a legal resident of Portland for almost 20 years. In the fall of 2018, he began having terrible headaches. After months of suffering from these, Zachary made the decision to see his primary care provider. His provider decided that scans should be done to rule out anything serious before beginning treatment for what he thought was probably migraine headaches. Zachary had the routine scans and at 5:00 p.m. he received a call from his doctor with the results. Zachary was diagnosed with advanced-stage glioblastoma multiforme brain cancer, one of the deadliest brain tumors with a very low survival rate. Zachary immediately began an aggressive treatment. After 12 weeks of treatment, they saw no improvement in his condition. At that time, his doctors sat down with him to discuss options. He was given approximately 6 months to live, giving him the dreaded diagnosis of being terminally ill. They discussed hospice care and other end-of-life options. After surveying the options, Zachary expressed the wish to participate in Physician Aid-In-Dying.
Considering all aspects of the Death With Dignity legislation that has been passed into law in Oregon, consider the following in a paper of 1,000-1,250 words:
- Does Zachary meet the requirements to take part in this practice? Why? Be detailed and specific in your evaluation of this practice.
- Considering Death With Dignity legislation, is mental health a component that is evaluated and considered? Do you support this aspect of the legislation?
- As we near end of life it is often that a surrogate is put in place for our medical decisions. How does this work with the practice of Physician Aid-in-dying?
- What do you anticipate seeing in the future with this controversial practice in health care?
