Introduction A slow, painful, undignified death is a fate that most of us would not wish on our worst enemies. Proponents for assisted suicide argue that suffering in dying is a plight that many doctors and nurses force on their unwilling patients. The question of assisted suicide, and in particular the nurse's role in assisted suicide, is a topic that concerns all nurses. A look at the background, the arguments for, and the arguments against assisted suicide may suggest answers. Euthanasia is categorized as either active or passive.
Active euthanasia is illegal in most settings, and some people consider it to be the same as murder.
Allowing a patient to refuse life sustaining treatment and removing a feeding tube at the patient's request are examples of passive euthanasia. The patient will die, but the cause will be a natural process. It is called suicide when a person takes his or her own life, and assisted suicide when a person helps another to take his or her own life. Assisted suicide straddles the line between active and passive euthanasia. The caregiver generally provides the means of death, but the patient takes the action.