City docs to organise debate on euthanasia

Most welcome SC's rejection of plea of mercy killing for Mumbai nurse Aruna Shanbaug

City docs to organise debate on euthanasia

Most welcome SC's rejection of plea of mercy killing for Mumbai nurse Aruna Shanbaug

Nurses at the KEM hospital in Mumbai celebrate Supreme Court's decision to not allow mercy killing for Aruna Shanbaug

This has sparked a series of debates among the medical community on an otherwise ignored area, euthanasia.
President of the city chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA) Dr Sharad Agharkhedkar said it was the right time to organise a conference on the subject.

"The timing is right and we think that there should be a healthy debate about this subject. Though we had organised a debate two weeks ago with regards to euthanasia and Aruna Shanbaug's case, we shall be holding a higher-level meeting this time preferably with experts on this subject. We must know what our peers think and the issues involved in euthanasia as well as the solutions or a framework on how to treat such cases,"
he said.

Most of the medical community seemed to be in favour of the Supreme Court judgment and said that euthanasia was not needed for Aruna.

"I completely agree with the judgment as I feel the right to decide on taking someone's life even as a mercy act is extremely complicated. Firstly, we have to have a system in place to ensure that such decisions are impartial and not used for ulterior motives. Rather than talking about one single case, we have to initiate an ongoing debate on this subject and come up with a solution on how euthanasia cases should be treated. But at the same time, I don't deny that some might be suffering badly and may need it. However, in Aruna's case I think withdrawing food would be inhuman," he said.

Dr Agharkhedkar said that by putting Aruna to sleep might rob her of a chance of a future cure for her state.
"The way science is progressing, you never know if some stem cell technology can find a cure for her state or better her way of life. In Aruna's case, she isn't on ventilator; her vital organs are working well. She only needs to be fed and when so many families choose to keep their loved ones alive even though they are a complete vegetable, would it be fair to withdraw food for someone like Aruna?" he argued.

Dr Devendra Shirole, head of medico-legal advisory committee to IMA India, said that he was in favour of passive euthanasia provided there were proper guidelines.

"Who is to decide who will die and who will not? I think we have to first create a system, like how we have an organs donation committee that decides on a case-to-case basis, and a proper law governing it. The committee should have clinicians, social workers, ethicists, legal representatives, among others, who can look at the case from all angles and only if a patient has no hope and cannot survive without ventilator support, the decision should be taken with the consent of all parties concerned including families and treating doctors," said Shirole.
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