Posted by alexandra_k on August 24, 2018, at 21:53:15
In reply to Re: personal diary correction, posted by alexandra_k on August 24, 2018, at 21:41:06
so it turns out that the churches here have defined euthanasia such that:
euthanasia does not happen now. it is illegal. it does not happen in our hospitals or our aged care facilities or during birthing.
if euthanasia is legalised then people will slaughter the disabled.
and such things that do happen, now, in our hospitals and aged care facilities and in birthing on a rather regular basis, like:
- turning off a life support machine
- not putting someone into an available life support machine
- turning off an incubator
- not putting someone into an available incubator
- not resucitating
- removing nutrition feeding tubes / not providing nutrients
- not changing dialysis bags
- providing a dose of a drug that is likely to result in deathnone of these things count as euthanasia. because, again, euthanasia is not something that happens in New Zealand.
so...
in my medical interview... when i was asked about my view on euthanasia... the 'socially acceptable response' that showed the interview committee that i was not a sociopath was supposed to be:
nonononono under no circumstances never. if euthanasia were to be legalised disabled people would be murdered in their sleep!
but instead i had in mind the above cases that occur in our hospitals and aged care facilities and birthing hubs (though perhaps not the non-birthing birthing hubs) all the f*ck*ng time.
because it's actually complicated. whether / when any of these things should occur. and you do need to factor in what the person wants (whether they have expressed views to people about what they want if they find themself in a coma one day). you also need to factor in the family. probably allow the family time to come together and see for themselves and come to terms with things.
otherwise... what? what do they want to happen? they want doctors to make these decisions while pretending they aren't making these decisions? Or, what? they want managers to be making these decisions on the basis of what? deciding whether money should go to keeping patient A on life support and / or patient B on life suppor and / or a pay increase for themselves?
Is that how it's supposed to go down? That's the non-psychopath answer? That's the socially acceptable response?
?
poster:alexandra_k
thread:1100563
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20180816/msgs/1100601.html