The Practice of Euthanasia

In the interplay of critical and self-conscious patients and an ever-aging society the question arises how far patient autonomy sensibly should go and which parameters are deemed to be relevant for end-of-life-decisions. The progress in medicine over the last decades has led on one hand to the possibility of saving lives and maintaining them in situations where before it seemed to be impossible. Nowadays Therefore more and more people are afraid that this boom can be to their detriment when it prolongs instead of shortens their suffering. The fear of unbearable pain and of loss of control fuels the discussion about whether or not euthanasia is morally permissible and should be legalized. This thesis deals with the questions: What speaks in favor of and against the legalization of euthanasia? What forms of treatment are subsumed under the term "euthanasia"? What is the current legal situation in Austria? How far should patient autonomy go? In order to answer these questions a literature research was done which revealed that active euthanasia is not allowed in Austria but in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and partly allowed in Switzerland. Interviews conducted among medical staff showed that medical personnel in Austria mostly are in favor of active euthanasia because they are not satisfied with the end of life care that is provided at the moment. They also embrace the trend of patient autonomy and think that patients can have the autonomous wish to end their lives but that it is difficult to determine a patient's autonomy. The reason for this is that autonomy is a gradual value that comprises patients' capacity as well as patients' long-standing goals, values, and preferences that were developed during their life. Therefore it can be concluded that increasing the availability of appropriate end-of-life care could be a solution that prevents medical staff from taking uncomfortable decisions and still enables patients to die in a dignified way.