Physician Assisted Death: Creating Space for the Discussion within Christian Bioethics
Phillip Choi, MD, University of Michigan
“Doc…I know I am going to die. I am not afraid to die. But I am afraid of choking to death and I am afraid of dying alone.” I am a physician and a practicing Christian. I care for patients with the devastating disease Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease that weakens the body’s muscles at a rapid rate. The disease is universally terminal and patients die on average within 3-5 years of diagnosis, most commonly from progressive respiratory failure. Most patients choose to forego aggressive life sustaining measures. Therefore, quality end of life care is vital for all my patients.
Physician assisted suicide, medical aid in dying, euthanasia. Various technical terms have been used to describe the process by which a patient, with the help of a physician, can control the time and circumstances of his death. Less technical language, including killing, death with dignity, compassion, and murder are used to increasingly polarize advocates on either side of the argument.
Patients with ALS are 10x more likely to request physician assisted death than patients with cancer in states where this is permissible. Many of the legal cases that have influenced current laws in North America and Europe have revolved around patients with ALS. I have never practiced in a state where physician assisted death is legal, but I have received the occasional hypothetical inquiries from patients. “Is euthanasia legal here?” “Would I have to move to Oregon?” The patients often follow this with a nervous chuckle, but my first-hand experiences with hundreds of ALS patients has taken the topic from a seemingly easy Christian bioethical absolute to a more nebulous reality with which I continue to wrestle.
This proposed paper session will tackle two main topics. First, I will present bioethical arguments that advocates and opponents of physician assisted death have used to support their positions. The belief that all life is sacred and that physicians should never cause the death of patients are inherent truths that are fundamental in Christian bioethics. These tenets are often put at odds with concepts of patient autonomy and dignity that dominate secular society. I will argue that the relational nature of the Triune God should reframe how we both life and die. Second, I will question what it means for the medical domain to remain sacred for practitioners of faith. Is there space for physicians to wrestle with a topic as morally polarizing as physician assisted death? I will share my journey as a practicing Christian physician that has experienced the tension between theoretical bioethics and the reality of an individual patient’s desire to control death. This paper will be a combination of storytelling, bioethical arguments, and personal testimony that will speak to the sacred relationship between physician and patient, as well as a physician and his community.
Physician assisted suicide, medical aid in dying, euthanasia. Various technical terms have been used to describe the process by which a patient, with the help of a physician, can control the time and circumstances of his death. Less technical language, including killing, death with dignity, compassion, and murder are used to increasingly polarize advocates on either side of the argument.
Patients with ALS are 10x more likely to request physician assisted death than patients with cancer in states where this is permissible. Many of the legal cases that have influenced current laws in North America and Europe have revolved around patients with ALS. I have never practiced in a state where physician assisted death is legal, but I have received the occasional hypothetical inquiries from patients. “Is euthanasia legal here?” “Would I have to move to Oregon?” The patients often follow this with a nervous chuckle, but my first-hand experiences with hundreds of ALS patients has taken the topic from a seemingly easy Christian bioethical absolute to a more nebulous reality with which I continue to wrestle.
This proposed paper session will tackle two main topics. First, I will present bioethical arguments that advocates and opponents of physician assisted death have used to support their positions. The belief that all life is sacred and that physicians should never cause the death of patients are inherent truths that are fundamental in Christian bioethics. These tenets are often put at odds with concepts of patient autonomy and dignity that dominate secular society. I will argue that the relational nature of the Triune God should reframe how we both life and die. Second, I will question what it means for the medical domain to remain sacred for practitioners of faith. Is there space for physicians to wrestle with a topic as morally polarizing as physician assisted death? I will share my journey as a practicing Christian physician that has experienced the tension between theoretical bioethics and the reality of an individual patient’s desire to control death. This paper will be a combination of storytelling, bioethical arguments, and personal testimony that will speak to the sacred relationship between physician and patient, as well as a physician and his community.