Assisted suicide and AIDS patients. A survey of physicians' attitudes.

Physicians' attitudes about assisted suicide were assessed by using a vignette of an acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients who requests a lethal injection. Of the 389 respondents, 34% received at least 1 request for assisted suicide; 9% had requests from an AIDS patient; and 41% had at least indirectly assisted a terminal patient to die in actual practice. Thirty-three percent of the respondents agreed to the authors' hypothetical patient's request for a lethal injection. Medical and personal experiences did not determine attitudes that were somewhat influenced by ethical beliefs and religious commitment. The study confirms previous findings that many physicians underestimate the effect of depressive illness on rational decision making concerning assisted suicide the effect of depressive illness on rational decision making concerning assisted suicide requests.