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The above areas of concern are very real; there is evidence that non-voluntary euthanasia occurs in other countries where assisted suicide is an accepted medical practice (Debate, 2009). Mental health is often in issue with chronic diseases and end-of-life care, and determining when people are capable of making the choice of assisted-suicide is an impossible task -- some would even argue that the request itself is evidence of mental unhealthy, and should be interpreted as a request for better care (APA, 2001; True Compassion, 2009).
John Stuart Mill, who wrote directly and explicitly in opposition to Kant with his Utilitarian ethics, believed that it was only the effects of an action that determined its morality: "the influence of actions on happiness is a most material and even predominant consideration in many of the details of morals" (Mill, 1871). This is often interpreted as "the greater good for the greatest number." In cases of assisted suicide, the detriment to society at large, as well as to friends, family and even the patients themselves far outweighs any perceived benefits derived...
On a practical level, medical science is deprived of information regarding the patient's condition and its progression, which reduces the level of care available to others. This is in addition to the additional mental stress on surviving loved ones already mentioned, and the missing opportunities for the patient after their death.
There are many reasons that assisted suicide should not be permissible. This paper only touches the surface of several key points of the debate, but the message is, I hope, quite clear: killing people is wrong, and it is not something doctors or society should engage in.
References
APA. (2001). "End-of-life issues and care." Accessed 7 March 2009. http://www.apa.org/pi/eol/arguments.html#2
Braddock, C. & Tonelli, M. (1998). "Physician-assisted suicide." Ethics in medicine. University of Washington school of medicine official website. Accessed 7 March 2009. http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pas.html
Debate." (2009). Euthanasia.com. Accessed 7 March 2009. http://www.euthanasia.com/debate.html
Mill, J. (1871). Utilitarianism. London: Longman, Greens, Reader, and Dyer.
Philosophy: Kantian Ethics." (2001). Lander University philosophy department official website. Accessed 7 March 2009. http://philosophy.lander.edu/ethics/kant.html
True compassion advocates. (2009). "Offering life affirming care, hope & support." Accessed 7 March 2009. http://noassistedsuicide.com
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