"To Live Each Day with Dignity"

To live in a manner worthy of our human dignity, and to spend our final days on this earth in peace and comfort, surrounded by loved ones—that is the hope of each of us. In particular, Christian hope sees these final days as a time to prepare for our eternal destiny. Today, however, many people fear the dying process. They are afraid of being kept alive past life’s natural limits by burdensome medical technology. They fear experiencing intolerable pain and suffering, losing control over bodily functions, or lingering with severe dementia. They worry about being abandoned or becoming a burden on others

Read the US Bishops' Statement on Physician-Assisted Suicide

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Assisted Suicide: Hemlock's Twisted Logic

perscpective-150by Richard M. Doerflinger

On June 16 the Catholic bishops of the United States approved their first-ever policy statement focused on physician-assisted suicide, To Live Each Day with Dignity. This prompted a response from the group formerly known as the Hemlock Society, which now goes by the euphemism “Compassion & Choices” (C&C).

The title of C&C president Barbara Coombs Lee’s blog, “Dogma vs. Dignity,” nicely sums up her argument: Assisted suicide (though she refuses to call it that) has proved that it serves the freedom and dignity of seriously ill patients in Oregon; C&C promotes “comprehensive palliative care” that includes this option; and the only remaining objection is religious dogma, illustrated by the bishops’ insistence that “one religious authority” can “overrule the most personal decisions of individuals of every faith.”

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Examining the Bishops' Ethical and Religious Directives

grandmainhospital150In November 2009, the U.S. bishops issued the fifth edition of their Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services (ERDs).

The directives—first released in the 1980s—cover all aspects of Catholic health care: the social, pastoral and spiritual responsibility of Catholic health care providers; the professional-patient relationship; issues in care for the beginning of life and care for the seriously ill and dying; and the forming of partnerships with non-Catholic health care providers.

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Update on Medically Assisted Nutrition and Hydration

by Gerald D. Coleman, S.S,
Vice President, Corporate Ethics, Daughters of Charity Health System

Since the 1980s, there have been a number of high profile cases involving persons receiving medically assisted nutrition and hydration (MANH), e.g., Claire Conroy, Paul Brophy, Nancy Cruzan, Hugh Finn, and Terri Schiavo. The provision of nutrition and hydration through the use of various medical interventions, sometimes referred to as “tube feeding,” is one of the most complex and controversial issues in contemporary bioethics.

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Physician-assisted suicide as public policy?

A 45-page PowerPoint that teaches about public policy, reviews the history of suicide/euthanasia, outlines Church teaching, reviews the current state of the law, and discusses current efforts in California to block the legalization of physician-assisted suicide.  (Download 1.3 Mb)