According to the Roman Catholic Church, there is an obligation to continue to supplynutrition and hydration to the unconscious patient (Larue, 88). The brain of the patient may still function but it would not be in a normal way. Theywould be conscious but they wouldn’t be capable to express how they are feeling. There would beno way of telling how the patient feels or what their needs or wants may be, and contrary to whatthey think, the body of the patient will most likely not survive without the aid of the life supportsystems (Battin, 72). Even if the patient were to come out of this vegetative state he or she wouldbe severely disabled, so constant medical attention would be required for the rest of their lives(Roberts, 26). There is a fine line in defining the rights of the individual, responsibilities of the doctor,and the criteria used in making end-of-life decisions. How decisions are made is a verycomplicated one. The decision should be between the patient and the doctor. Since the patient isthe only one that can determine how he or she feels about his or her position, it is ultimately up tothem but it shouldn’t be hidden from their family and friends (Roberts, 138). The timing and the manner of death are personal decisions. It should not be made bydoctors, a hospital, or courts, but by the patients, unless deemed incompetent. If they are deemedincompetent then the decision should be made by the family (Woodman, 163). If patients openlyhad the right to choose weather or not they want to be assisted in suicide it would give them achance to say goodbye to their friends and loved ones. It would also help them to gain peacewithin themselves (Larue, 254). However some believe that the state is charged with the responsibility of making sure thatpeople’s lives are protected. It is not right to let a physician take or assist a patient in taking his orher own life. It is considered to be murder because the attending phy...
