What Kind of Death: The Ethics of Determining One's Own Death

This book examines physician-assisted death, suicide, palliative care, and sedation until death, and proposes a two-tiered system with access to humane means for voluntary, well-considered, and durable decisions, but with restrictions on doctors' involvement. It considers new evidence in bioethics, applied ethics, philosophy of law, and health law.

Format: Hardback
Length: 402 pages
Publication date: 31 October 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Numerous books have been released on the subject of physician-assisted death, providing a comprehensive and in-depth examination of this topic. However, this book goes beyond the scope of physician-assisted death and encompasses a broader range of end-of-life decisions, including suicide, palliative care, and sedation until death.

In every jurisdiction where laws permitting physician-assisted death exist, a central point of controversy revolves around whether such assistance should solely be accessible to terminally ill patients or to individuals who desire to end their lives. While the right to determine the manner and time of one's own death is fundamental, it does not necessarily imply that physicians should be allowed to cooperate in ensuring a quick and peaceful death.

In this book, Govert den Hartogh delves into the fundamental and practical aspects of end-of-life decision-making, addressing issues of legal regulation. He proposes a two-tiered system that aims to provide access to humane means of ending one's life for individuals who make voluntary, well-considered, and durable decisions to end their lives. However, doctors should only participate in a joint action to end a patient's life on their request if they are convinced that it is in the patient's best interests, particularly by alleviating intolerable and unrelievable suffering.

It is worth considering whether this second service should be restricted to dying patients. The entire argument hinges on the extent to which legal safeguards can be designed to trust judgments regarding the requesting person's request and their suffering. The book presents extensive new evidence on this issue, making it valuable for researchers and advanced students working in bioethics, applied ethics, philosophy of law, and health law.

Overall, "What Kind of Death?" offers a thought-provoking exploration of the complex issues surrounding end-of-life decisions, providing a comprehensive and nuanced perspective on physician-assisted death and its broader implications.

Weight: 930g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032247960