The ethics of euthanasia: advocates' perspectives

Area of Science:

• Bioethics
• Medical Law
• Philosophy of Medicine

Background:

• The Netherlands is unique globally for its legal framework permitting euthanasia.
• Dutch law allows physician-assisted termination of life upon a patient's voluntary, sustained, and well-considered request due to unbearable and hopeless suffering.

Purpose of the Study:

• To reconstruct the Dutch debate on the moral permissibility of euthanasia.
• To clarify and strengthen arguments supporting euthanasia through philosophical analysis.
• To critically evaluate existing ethical frameworks for euthanasia.

Main Methods:

• Philosophical reconstruction of ethical arguments.
• Analysis of The Pure Autonomy View (TPAV) and The Joint View (TJV).
• Critical examination of the principles of autonomy and beneficence in the context of euthanasia.

Main Results:

• The Pure Autonomy View (TPAV) grounds euthanasia solely on the patient's autonomous request.
• The Joint View (TJV) combines respect for autonomy with the principle of beneficence, asserting euthanasia is in the patient's best interest.
• Both TPAV and TJV present inherent problems: TPAV lacks a doctor-centric justification, while TJV risks question-begging and imposing a specific view of well-being.

Conclusions:

• No straightforward argument favors TPAV or TJV over the other.
• Both dominant ethical frameworks for euthanasia are currently considered problematic.
• Further philosophical and ethical deliberation is required to refine justifications for legal euthanasia.