title: Assisted suicide for the terminally ill: why we must have a choice.
abstract: As someone who believes in assisted suicide (AS) for terminally ill patients, I find the American Nurses Association and National Hospice Organization's official opposition a cause of profound concern. One of the arguments used by these organizations is that the lack of good palliative care is a major reason people request aid in dying. The assumption is that symptoms can be controlled adequately at all times. To me, such beliefs represent an ideology of a certain kind of death--a good death--espoused in such statements. This essay is an opportunity to express a different reality.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Stephany
mesh_terms: D001293:Attitude to Death; D002755:Choice Behavior; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D006801:Humans; D026684:Personal Autonomy; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D017236:Suicide, Assisted; D013727:Terminal Care