Continuous sedation until death as physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia: a conceptual analysis

Area of Science:

• Medical Ethics
• End-of-Life Care
• Philosophy of Medicine

Background:

• Continuous sedation until death is often distinguished from physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia.
• This distinction typically hinges on the former not being considered an act of killing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To argue that continuous sedation until death is equivalent to physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia.
• To demonstrate that both practices involve killing.

Main Methods:

• Defining and clarifying palliative sedation and continuous sedation until death.
• Analyzing case studies and current practices.
• Defending definitions of death based on higher brain functioning.

Main Results:

• Continuous sedation until death eliminates consciousness, simulating higher brain definitions of death.
• Appeals to reversibility and double effect do not distinguish continuous sedation from physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia.
• Both practices are shown to involve killing.

Conclusions:

• Continuous sedation until death should be morally equated with physician-assisted suicide/euthanasia.
• The distinction between these practices is morally unfounded.
• The moral ramifications of this equivalence require clarification.