Tanner Rachel C
Issue Brief Health Policy Track Serv. 2004 Dec 31:1-16.
End of life care is a broad issues that encompasses many issues. Three of the larger issues are assisted suicide, chronic pain management, and advance health care directives. Assisted suicide has emerged as one of the most controversial ethical issues in the medical community, and one that is complicated more by technological advances that have allowed people to live longer. But as policymakers debate assisted suicide policy, state lawmakers must also examine ways to improve pain management and end-of-life care for people who suffer from terminal illnesses. Lawmakers are also grappling with ways to make it easier for individuals to specify their end-of-life wishes through advance health care directives.
临终关怀是一个广泛的议题，涵盖了许多问题。其中三个较大的问题是协助自杀、慢性疼痛管理和预先医疗指示。协助自杀已成为医学界最具争议的伦理问题之一，而且随着技术进步使人们寿命延长，这一问题变得更加复杂。但在政策制定者就协助自杀政策展开辩论时，州立法者还必须研究如何改善对晚期疾病患者的疼痛管理和临终关怀。立法者们也在努力寻找方法，以便让个人能更轻松地通过预先医疗指示明确其临终愿望。
