Hospice care or assisted suicide: a false dichotomy

Area of Science:

• Medical Ethics
• Bioethics
• Public Health Policy

Background:

• Hospice care and assisted suicide are often perceived as conflicting medical ethics.
• Concerns exist regarding a potential 'slippery slope' from assisted suicide to non-voluntary euthanasia or eugenics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To argue that assisted suicide availability is ethically compatible with hospice care.
• To analyze the ethical underpinnings of assisted suicide through historical and political lenses.
• To reframe the debate around personal autonomy and choice in end-of-life care.

Main Methods:

• Ethical analysis drawing on historical and political examples.
• Conceptual analysis of personal autonomy and its implications.
• Critique of the 'slippery slope' argument in the context of assisted suicide.

Main Results:

• Assisted suicide and hospice care are not inherently contradictory.
• The core ethical issue is the preservation or loss of personal autonomy.
• Restricting assisted suicide may paradoxically increase coercive medical and state interventions.

Conclusions:

• Advocating for assisted suicide aligns with respecting individual autonomy and choice.
• The 'slippery slope' argument against assisted suicide is flawed and overlooks potential harms of restriction.
• Policy decisions regarding end-of-life care must prioritize patient autonomy over paternalistic control.