End of life

Question 1

What is end of life care?

Answer 1

When someone is approaching their last days, weeks or months and is given care to make them more comfortable

Question 1

What does euthanasia linguistically mean and what is it ?

Answer 1

It means a good or gentle death. It’s the deliberate act of ending a person’s life to relieve suffering

Question 2

Types of euthanasia and it’s legality in the UK

Answer 2

Passive
Active ( illegal)
Passive voluntary
Active Voluntary (illegal)
Passive non-voluntary
Active Non-voluntary (illegal)

Question 3

What may be seen as passive, voluntary euthanasia

Answer 3

An adult with capacity who declines treatment or medical intervention, even if it’s life-saving
Medical staff can withhold treatment if they don’t think the patient stands to gain anything from it

Question 4

What’s the doctrine of double effect? How is it not seen as euthanasia in the UK?

Answer 4

When a doctor prescribes a high dose of opioid painkillers in order to ease the patient’s suffering, but may end up killing the patient if the dose it too high, as it can suppress breathing.
The intention of it must be to relieve suffering and not kill the patient

Question 5

What’s end of life medical care ?

Answer 5

when end of life care is provided by medical professional, such as nurse or doctor, and can include pain killers or palliative chemotherapy

Question 6

Example of medical end of life care

Answer 6

St. Columba’s hospice provides personalised medical care and support for those who have a life-limiting diagnosis or are approaching their death to help them retain their independence and prevent unnecessary admissions to hospital

Question 7

Why is there an increase need of end of life medical care of NHS?

Answer 7

increase of people with more complex Heath issues living longer due to medical advancements

Question 8

What should end of life medical care do, according to NHS?

Answer 8

Provide support to people who are in their last months or years of life at home or in a hospice.
It should help you die with dignity.

Question 9

What’s palliative care?

Answer 9

Type of end of life care which aims to manage your pain or other distressing symptoms, but not recovery

Question 10

WHO statistics of who needs palliative care

Answer 10

56.8m people, including 25.6m people in their last year of life need palliative care worldwide and only 14% are receiving it

Question 11

What’s holistic care and when is it used?

Answer 11

It looks at the patient as a whole, not just their physical symptoms but also mental health, social-economic situation, spirituality
Used by many nurses towards end of life

Question 12

What’s end of life social care

Answer 12

Can be provided by anyone, in theory, such as friends or neighbours and can include things like helping with the washing, cooking and dressing

Question 13

Situation of social care in Scotland

Answer 13

People over aged 65, are given free personal care
Financial assessments are carried out by councils to check how much of the social care support you’re able to pay and how much the council will provide

Question 14

Religious responses to end of life care

Answer 14

Roman Catholic
- Many Christian’s encourage this as stated in Matthew 22 of the Bible, “love thy neighbour”
- In Matthew 25:36, Jesus says “I was sick and you looked after me.” This may encourage Christians to pursue a career in healthcare or simply help out as a volunteer or friend
Islam
- khalipha
- Hadith narrated by Al-tirmidhi, records the prophet saying, “He is not one of us who has no compassion for our little ones and does not honour our old ones.”

Question 15

What did Dame Cicely Saunders (Anglican Christian) say on end of life care?

Answer 15

“It is killing rather than caring which denies the dignity of the dying.”

Question 16

What’s assisted dying and its legality

Answer 16

• When a person who is terminally ill requests to end their life by the help of a doctor who prescribes a lethal dose of drug which the person requesting must be able to take themselves
• it’s illegal in the UK, but allowed in countries such as Switzerland, in Dignitas. People from the UK can travel and request assisted death

Question 17

What does labour MP Lord Falconer believe about criminalisation of assisted dying

Answer 17

It brings about inequality where the poor are left to suffer and the rich can travel to other countries to get an assisted death

Question 18

What does former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, believe about criminalising assisted dying

Answer 18

He said ignoring someone’s pleas to end their life seems to contradict a crucial hallmark of Christianity, compassion

Question 19

What does Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell argue about human gift?

Answer 19

He said human gift is to be able to come to terms with death and that human freedom is only win by reconciling with the need to die, so not hastening it

Question 20

What does Dignity Dying believe about assisted dying?

Answer 20

They believe dying people aren’t suicidal but don’t have a choice to live, so should get control over their death
This is an objection to an argument which could say that legalising assisted dying could legitimise suicide
According to them, a Briton travels to Dignitas every eight days for assisted suicide. More than 1000 people in Dignitas have sided since being set up in 1998

Question 21

What is BMA’s position on assisted dying?

Answer 21

They changed their against position to neutral in September 2021

Question 22

Religious responses on assisted dying

Answer 22

Christian
Anglican Christian Dame Cicely Saunders is opposed
Roman Catholic Catechism (2276) “those whose lives have been weakened or diminished deserve special respect.”

Islam
Scottish association of mosques and former first minister Humza Yousaf has shown opposition to Liam McCarthur’s bill which tries to legalise assisted dying
Surah 3 “nor can a soul die except by Allah’s leave, the term being fixed as by writing.”
Hadith narrated by Al-tirmidhi, records the prophet saying, “He is not one of us who has no compassion for our little ones and does not honour our old ones.”