Physicians, Assisted Suicide, and Christian Virtues
The debate about physician-assisted suicide has long been entwined with the nature of the doctor-patient relationship. Opponents of physician-assisted suicide insist that the traditional goals of medicine do not and should not include intentionally bringing about or hastening a patient’s death, wher...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
[2021]
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| In: |
Christian bioethics
Year: 2021, Volume: 27, Issue: 1, Pages: 50-68 |
| IxTheo Classification: | CH Christianity and Society NCA Ethics NCH Medical ethics |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The debate about physician-assisted suicide has long been entwined with the nature of the doctor-patient relationship. Opponents of physician-assisted suicide insist that the traditional goals of medicine do not and should not include intentionally bringing about or hastening a patient’s death, whereas proponents of physician-assisted suicide argue that this practice is an appropriate tool for doctors to relieve a patient’s suffering. In this article, I discuss these issues in light of the relevance of a Christian account of the doctor-patient relationship. I argue that Christians typically object to assist suicide independently of the doctor-patient relationship. I argue that a focus on the Christian virtues of charity, compassion, and humility helps to explain why doctors should not assist their patients in suicide. |
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| ISSN: | 1744-4195 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Christian bioethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/cb/cbaa021 |
