Hosp Ethics. 1993 May-Jun;9(3):9-10.
Although right-to-die initiatives have failed in Washington and California in recent years, the issue will resurface in Ohio and New Hampshire later this year. In a Gannett News Service article published in the April 12 Chicago Sun-Times, Ross Goldstein, a San Francisco psychologist and "trend tracker," states that physician-assisted suicide will soon become accepted. He predicts a new form of doctor/manager will surface to help families decide whether to take this step and how to do so. "Baby boomers don't turn over authority to their doctors," he says. "When they reach the end state, they will expect to be part of the decision-making team." For now, the debate centers around individual cases and two different approaches, as exemplified by two different proponents. On the one hand is Jack Kevorkian, who envisions a network of death doctors or "obitiatrists" practicing "medicine." On the other is Timothy Quill, who calls for more humane care for the dying and the legalization of physician-assisted suicide, but with strict guidelines and in the confines of a long-term doctor-patient relationship. The following articles look at reactions in Michigan toward Kevorkian and at a case in British Columbia that may reach the Supreme Court of Canada.
尽管近年来“死亡权利”倡议在华盛顿州和加利福尼亚州均告失败，但该问题将于今年晚些时候在俄亥俄州和新罕布什尔州再度出现。在4月12日发表于《芝加哥太阳时报》的一篇甘尼特新闻服务社的文章中，旧金山的心理学家兼“趋势追踪者”罗斯·戈尔茨坦称，医生协助自杀将很快被人们接受。他预测，一种新型的医生/管理者将会出现，帮助家庭决定是否采取这一步骤以及如何去做。“婴儿潮一代不会把决定权交给医生，”他说，“当他们走到生命尽头时，他们希望成为决策团队的一员。”目前，这场辩论集中在个别案例以及两种不同的方法上，两种不同的支持者就是例证。一方面是杰克·凯沃尔基安，他设想有一个实施“医学”的死亡医生网络或“讣告医生”。另一方面是蒂莫西·奎尔，他呼吁为临终者提供更人道的护理，并使医生协助自杀合法化，但要有严格的指导方针，且需在长期医患关系的范围内进行。以下文章将探讨密歇根州对凯沃尔基安的反应，以及不列颠哥伦比亚省一个可能会上诉至加拿大最高法院的案例。
