Euthanasia is a means of ending life intentionally as a means of alleviating pain and suffering. It dates as early as the history of western philosophy. Key figures such as Seneca elders, Socrates and Plato are among the notable early western philosophers who championed for its practice. Nonetheless, its controversy has also been in existence almost for the same duration. For instance, Hippocrates II one of the key figures in the history of medicine is recorded stating that he would not prescribe a deadly drug to neither please anybody nor provide advice that may cause death. The statement is not clear whether it targeted Euthanasia or not but many interpretations allude it to his criticism of euthanasia. Early writing on the subject includes the mentioning of the usage of chloroform to hasten the death of terminally ill patients by a school teacher by the name Samuel Williams In 1870 at Birmingham Speculative Club in England (Stolber, 2007) . Ever since, the subject has recorded debates within law and ethics in different parts of the world (Mystakidou, Parpa, Tsilika, Katsouda & Vlahos, 2005) . This paper discusses the ethical concerns of euthanasia and the current trends in its practice.
Right from its conception through its formalization euthanasia has been a controversial subject that raises a lot of ethical concerns. The three major concerns are its place in most religions, possible abuse by the patients and its potential abuse against the patients. Pro-euthanasia campaigns, on the other hand, emphasizes that multiple terminal illnesses lacks cure and may cause undue suffering to individuals who could otherwise opt for a peaceful ending of their lives. Concerns from both divides have gained significant attention as discussed Stolberg, (2007) and Mystakidou, et al., (2005) .
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Euthanasia is against the teaching of most religions. It forms the major impediment to its embrace and practice. For instance, almost all the religion that believes in the Supreme God considers life sacred only God can give or take it. Therefore, a man should have no authority his or another person’s over life. Some of these religions include Christians, Muslim, Judaism and Roman Catholics. The religions have influences nations whose presence is strong to illegalize the practice. Israel is an example of countries that has illegalized euthanasia through legislation and practice of the Jewish law (Gesundheit, Steinberg, Glick, & Jotkovitz, 2006) . Similarly, Buddhism and Hinduism criticize the practice because it interferes the eternal cycle of life. The religions champion for alternatives such as specialized care, and assistance for the senior and terminally-ill members of the society ( Keown, 2002) .
Euthanasia has also been criticized for its potential abuse against the patient. For instance, the life of terminally ill patients can be terminated without their consent. For example an insurance company can choose to end the life of a patient when it feels the cost of sustaining their life is exorbitant. One case in point includes the refusal of an insurance company to pay chemotherapy treatment for a patient after the State of California passed the End of Life Act (Tammy, 2017) . Other than the insurance providers, there are also reported disagreements between the patient and the caregivers ( Keown, 2002) .
As discussed by Breslin, MacRae, Bell & Singer, (2005), possible disagreement between the patient and the caregivers exposes the patient to exploitation over their right to live. The practitioner can exploit the patient's inability to accurately tell their medical status into compelling them to consent their end of life. Although this is against the code of conduct for most of the medical professional's end of life laws are likely to override their effect justifying the exploitative act.
Similarly, the disagreement between the patient and the medical professional can result in the patient’s abuse of euthanasia. Given the limited knowledge of patients’ medical condition and the ever-evolving medication technology, the patient can evoke administration of euthanasia prematurely. The medical professional’s position in such cases is likely to be overridden by the patient’s right given the uncertainty of their condition. In such a case, if the professional would have been given time, they stands a chance to survive (Breslin, MacRae, Bell & Singer, 2005) . Some cases of patient initiated euthanasia have been revoked and the patients recovered full ("8 Most Controversial Cases of Euthanasia - Oddee", 2018). The consideration of the ethical concerns about the subject has prompted states such as France, Australia, Philippines and Ireland to formulate legislation that illegalizes the practice (Wallerstein, 1997).
Advocates of euthanasia consider it an advancement in palliative care. As Bernheim et al., (2008) observes, euthanasia is a form of individuals’ choice of a decent death. The death is decent in the sense that individuals have an opportunity to select the termination of their life without undergoing prolonged suffering due to the existence of multiple ailments whose cure is unknown. Some of the terminal illnesses include Stage four cancers, and Cystic fibrosis ("8 Most Controversial Cases of Euthanasia - Oddee", 2018). The Terminal stage of an ailment presents adverse effects on the patient. Some of the effects include depression, anger, feeling to commit suicide, unbearable pain, and refusal to get medication and feeling a burden to the society. Consideration of the adverse effects has compelled many states into formulating legislation on the practice. Some of the known governments that have legalized euthanasia include the Netherlands, Belgium, and the United States of America (USA) states of Oregon and Quebec of Canada (Landry, Foreman & Kekewich, 2015).
Despite the hard stands held by most of the individuals against euthanasia, current trends indicate that the practice is slowly gaining acceptance. Some of the indications of its approval include the increase in the legislation on the subject. Currently, 31 countries have legislation or guidance by law organs for or against the practice. The states include the USA, German, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Argentina, Canada, Australia, Chile among others (Wallerstein, 1997) . Though there is legislation that illegalizes the practice entirely such that of Israel, most of the bill against the practice illegalizes active euthanasia (Gesundheit et al., 2006) . In which case the doctor induces death but instead opts for passive where medication or life support can be withdrawn for the patient to die without inducement ( Keown, 2002).
In conclusion, though euthanasia has been a controversial issue since its conception, it is being assimilated into society. As discussed earlier, it can be noted that the controversy can be traced back to Hippocrates II one of the key figures of medicine. Its publication in 1870 brought to light a debate that has never won the world’s consensus. Major concerns about euthanasia are its discouragement by religion, possible exploitation of patients and potential abuse by patients. The concerns have attracted sharp criticism especially from the Roman Catholic Church and legislation in countries such as France who prohibit it, on the other hand, a different group champion euthanasia's administration. They consider it a development in palliative care. They cite the adverse effects that the terminally ill face. Key among them the constant desire to commit suicide, depression and unending pain. To that effect, some states have legislated in favor of the practice such as the Netherlands. Despite the controversy, formulation of law for and against the practice is likely to provide clear direction about its practice and alleviate the negative concerns associated with it.
References
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Breslin, J., MacRae, S., Bell, J., & Singer, P. (2005). Top ten health care ethics challenges facing the public: views of Toronto bioethicists. BMC Medical Ethics , 6 (1). DOI: 10.1186/1472-6939-6-5
Eitht Most Controversial Cases of Euthanasia - Oddee. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.oddee.com/item_99258.aspx
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Mystakidou, K., Parpa, E., Tsilika, E., Katsouda, E., & Vlahos, L. (2005). Evolution of Euthanasia and Its Perceptions in Greek Culture and Civilization. Perspectives In Biology And Medicine , 48 (1), 95-102. DOI: 10.1353/pbm.2005.0013
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Tammy, B. (2017). Abusing assisted suicide laws Insurance companies take advantage of patients seen as too expensive to keep alive. Logo: The Washington Times . Retrieved from https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jun/7/assisted-suicide-laws-can-be-abused/
