Human beings are a higher level of creation than animals because we are made in the image of God. "Death with dignity" is tantamount to suicide, which is a sin because it is a desperate act of despair, denying all hope for the future, and killing the godlikeness in man. Palliative care is so advanced now that patients who live in advanced countries like the United States can be spared the pain and suffering that the poor masses of developing countries must endure when they are at death's door.