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Assisted Suicide Should be Allowed

by Dr. Trupti Shirole on Jan 5 2012 2:51 PM

 Assisted Suicide Should be Allowed in UK
Doctors should be allowed to prescribe lethal doses of medicines for terminally ill patients to kill themselves, but only if they have less than 1-year to live, proposed the Commission on Assisted Dying.
This step can be taken only if the patient is judged to have the mental capacity and clear desire to die. Disabled people and those suffering from dementia or depression would not qualify for help in killing themselves.

The opinion of two independent doctors' would be required before deciding that a patient should be entitled to assisted suicide. It is recommended that there should be a 'cooling off' period of up to 2-weeks before being given the drugs that the patient is supposed to take themselves.

If this is implemented it would help about 1,000 people to die in England and Wales. However, the government indicated there were no plans to change the law.

Source-Medindia


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