Assisted suicide consists of a set of actions
or means that a doctor provides to a person to die. That person is usually in very deplorable
condition because of a disease. This term is completely different from
euthanasia—as most people name it—because in euthanasia, the action is made by
another person. Considered illegal, immoral, against religion, etc., assisted
suicide was the reason of living for an American doctor: Jack Kevorkian, also
known as “Dr. Death”
Why that nickname? He was the greatest supporter
of the assisted suicide in the United States. He believed in every person’s “right
to death”, even he questioned the concept of doctor as life saver. Because of
this, he put his beliefs in practice.
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| Dr. Kevorkian and the first Thanatron |
Jack Kevorkian was responsible of assisting 130
suicides of terminally ill people. Most of those deaths for mercy were
accomplished using an invention by Dr. Kevorkian himself. Its name is Thanatron, a device that involves pushing a button, which will
release a set of chemical solutions in the following order: 1) salt water; 2)
barbiturates acting as anesthesia; 3) potassium chloride, which stops the heart
and ends the person’s life; and 4) a muscle relaxant to prevent any side effect
from the body. This method is currently used in jails in the US for capital
punishment.
Kevorkian was a pioneer in this topic. Condemned
and blamed, he is considered a symbol by those who support assisted suicide. At
the same time, detractors questioned all his beliefs until he passed away in
2011. Should we decide over our lives in certain circumstances? What do you
think of Kevorkian’s invention? Can this matter be part of our society’s
principles?
