In most nhs hospitals in the UK  they put all elderly patients on codeine anyway enter non existent pain on their nursing records then finish them off with midazolam and alfentanil to alleviate non existent agitation  no one checks their controlled drugs registers although all uk police forces have a dedicated officer who is supposed to  most of them are married to nurses so they dont have to give anyone they consider elderly any of the treatments that a  year old would be entitled to  its licenced murder the way the NHS practice it in this area  quite why you are even dressing this subject up with an ethical discussion I cant fathom  its murder done with smoke and mirrors the intention is murder  it avoids blocking up nhs beds with lives unworthy of life  small matter of consent  is conveniently circumvented by filling them up with morphine first and saying the loss of conciousness is due to something like a stroke to their relatives  they rely on visitors knowing absolutely nothing about doseages and respiratory side effects of palliative care drugs  Its rife  but as the attending doctor is the one who writes the cause of death on the death certificate no one questions it at all