Instant Access To 100,000+ Essays!

Euthanasia Euthanasia is the practice of mercifully ending a person’s life, in order to release the individual from an incurable disease, intolerable suffering, or undignified death (Encarta). The word “euthanasia” derives from Greek-- Eu, "good", and Thanatos, "death"-- and originally referred to intentional mercy killing (Encarta). Physicians may practice two forms of euthanasia: active and passive euthanasia. Active euthanasia means painlessly putting someone to death for merciful reasons by a doctor, who order a lethal dose of medication to the patient. Whereas, passive euthanasia involves not doing something to prevent death, for instance when doctors refrain from the use of an artificial respirator to keep a patient alive who is fatally ill. (Encarta) Euthanasia differs from assisted suicide, in which a patient voluntarily brings about his or her own death with the assistance of another person, typically a physician. In this case, the act is a suicide (intentional self-inflicted death), because the patient actu