PEW
through medical treatment. And fully 70% say there are circumstances
when patients should be allowed to die, while just 22% believe that
doctors and nurses should always do everything possible to save a
patient. Public attitudes on these and many other end-of-life issues are
unchanged from 1990, despite advances in lifesaving technology, the
aging of the population, and the controversy associated with the Terri
Schiavo case. Most Americans believe it should be up to individuals
not the government or medical professionals to ultimately determine
their end-of-life medical decisions.
People also are much more willing to discuss sensitive end-of-life
issues with their loved ones than they were a generation ago. Nearly
seven-in-ten (69%) of those who are married say they have had a
conversation with their husband or wife about their spouse's wishes for
end-of-life medical care; only about half reported doing so in 1990
(51%). Among those with living parents, 57% say they have spoken with
their mother and 48% with their father about the parent's requests
for end-of-life treatment.
There is strong sentiment in favor of letting close family members
decide whether to continue medical treatment for a terminally ill loved
one who is unable to communicate their own wishes. Roughly
three-quarters (74%) say a family member should be permitted to make
this decision, which is little changed from 1990 (71%).
But Americans make a distinction between allowing a terminally ill
person to die and taking action to end someone's life. The public is
deeply divided over legalizing physician-assisted suicide; 46% approve
of laws permitting doctors to help patients to end their lives, while
about as many are opposed (45%).
http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=266
No comments:
Post a Comment