Policy, Prejudice, and Reality: Two Case Studies of Physician-Assisted Suicide

The petitions of two quadriplegic ventilator users for doctoral-assisted suicide and the responses to them illustrate the issues that frequently appear in such cases and, therefore, the dangers of legalizing that practice. The courts, the media, and other observers failed to recognize or ignored the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of disability policy studies 2005-06, Vol.16 (1), p.38-45
Main Author: Longmore, Paul K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Assisted suicide
Case Studies
Disability
Imprisonment
Independent Living
Life support systems
McAfree, Larry
Medical ethics
Medical Services
Nursing homes
Paralysis
People with disabilities
Philosophy
Physical Disabilities
Physicians
Psychological Evaluation
Public policy
Reporters
Residential Institutions
Right to die
Rivlin, David
Social Services
Spinal cord
Suicide
Ventilators
Vertebrae
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Summary:The petitions of two quadriplegic ventilator users for doctoral-assisted suicide and the responses to them illustrate the issues that frequently appear in such cases and, therefore, the dangers of legalizing that practice. The courts, the media, and other observers failed to recognize or ignored the discriminatory elements of public policy, health-care delivery, and social services that make the lives of some people with disabilities unendurable; in particular, by denying adequate funding for independent living, by failing to offer appropriate psychological evaluation and intervention, and by disregarding the perspectives of disability rights movement leaders in these cases and on these issues.
ISSN:1044-2073
1538-4802
DOI:10.1177/10442073050160010601