[Euthanasia as a worldwide dilemma of modern times]

Nowadays, the most important place in medicine is occupied by ethical and legal aspects of organization of medical care and the provision of qualitative medical services to citizens. The main mechanism of functioning of the patient-centric health care system is implementation of the rights of patients as described in our country within the framework of international legal acts, the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Civil, the Civil Procedure and Criminal Codes of the Russian Federation, as well as the Legislation on the protection of health of citizen. Since the mid of twentieth century, in many countries was widely discussed possibility of ensuring one of the most controversial and non-obvious rights of patient - the right to death. In medical practice, the mechanisms implementing this right are the acts of euthanasia, the assisted suicide, the voluntary death (refusal of water and food), "murder out of sympathy", terminal sedation and the phenomenon of "double effect" as well. The article presents review of scientific publications presented in national and international databases, highlighting prerequisites of implementation of euthanasia into practice and international experience of applying this mechanism of demise as well.