"I don't want to live anymore, let me die. ”
1. "Even if I give me 1 million, I don't dare to do it again"
Li Cheng (pseudonym), who was working outside, didn't have time to hand over the work, and was in a hurry to catch the train back to his hometown.
"Xiaocheng, I don't want to live anymore, you let me die. "This is what my mother said to him the most when she was sober.
The mother's lower abdomen was high and bulging, her whole body was swollen, and she had various complications of incontinence, so every night, the painful wails resounded on the floor. Li Cheng also secretly wept and decided to fulfill his mother's wish.
"Doctor, euthanize my mother, I signed the exemption form, please!" Li Cheng made up his mind and began to plead with the attending doctor. The doctor could only shake his head helplessly and leave the room.
Li Cheng's repeated kneeling and begging, and the old man's mournful wail, all made the doctor struggle repeatedly in his heart. With the injection of medicine, the old man stopped breathing and became the first patient to be euthanized in the mainland.
But the matter is far from over.
Other relatives seemed to see a way to make money and get justice, and eventually, the attending physician was arrested for intentional homicide. Li Cheng tried to clear the doctor's relationship in court, but the court ultimately held both parties responsible. After more than 400 days in detention in the detention center, the doctor was released on bail and appealed, and it took five years of repeated review of the case before the doctor cleared his name.
But at this time, the doctor's career and life were hit hard, and he bluntly said: "I regret it very much, even if I am given 1 million, I will not do it." ”
Since then, the dust has settled on the first case of "euthanasia" in China.
2. Spend a lot of money to go to Switzerland: just to leave with dignity
In 2019, Japan broadcast the documentary "She Chose Euthanasia", which recorded the life and death decision of Japanese woman Mina Kojima and the whole process of going to Switzerland for euthanasia.
Muina, who managed to live a happy life through hard work, was diagnosed with multiple system atrophy at the age of 48, which is an "immortal cancer".
At the beginning of the disease, Mui Ne's language function began to deteriorate, and her muscles gradually atrophied. She can only move with the help of a wheelchair, but this is just the beginning.
The doctor told her that as her condition worsened, the patient would be completely unable to take care of herself and would have to rely on a ventilator and stomach tube to stay alive. Looking at the patient who was already lying on the hospital bed and completely unable to take care of herself, Mina made up her mind completely, and contacted a euthanasia institution in Switzerland, and after receiving a notice from the institution that she was eligible for euthanasia, Mina and her two sisters went to Switzerland together.
On the hospital bed, Mina personally pressed the switch of the infusion, and under the camera, she smiled and said goodbye to her sisters:
"Really, thank you very much. ”
"I really didn't expect that at the end of the day, people would come to see me off. ”
"I'm really happy right now, and I'm really grateful to all of you. ”
Just 4 minutes later, Mina stopped breathing, ending her life of illness.
3. There has long been a discussion on euthanasia in the mainland
In 2019, a middle-aged woman suffered from systemic lupus erythematosus and other diseases, plus accidentally broke her leg and could not take care of herself.
The eldest daughter and eldest son-in-law could not bear the old man's continued torture and finally agreed to her request.
After the matter came to light. All three were convicted of intentional homicide for violating the criminal law and sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for five years. The case has caused heated discussions in society, and there are many different opinions on it.
In the 2020 National People's Congress and the National People's Congress, Shen Deyong, member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and director of the Social and Legal Committee, focused on issues such as end-of-life care and dignified death, suggesting that relevant departments should pay attention to this, organize research and demonstration on relevant issues as soon as possible, and legislate laws and regulations in a timely manner.
However, whether it is from the social level, the technical level or the legal level, "euthanasia" has many controversial points, so it is an issue that faces many difficulties.
4. Discussion: How to die a dignified death?
A survey shows that more than 80% of people support the legalization of euthanasia, and more than 84% believe that it is necessary to legislate on euthanasia in the mainland.
However, Ning Xiaohong, head of the palliative care team at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, and Zhang Di, associate professor of the School of Humanities at Peking Union Medical College, both believe that the mainland does not yet have the objective prerequisites for the legalization of euthanasia. Although euthanasia has not been legalized in China, this does not mean that no attempt has been made to it, palliative care is a mature discipline, palliative care emphasizes respect for the patient's ideas, and does not force the patient to make any choices, its core is to let life according to the laws of nature.
The documentary "The World" once told the story of a hospice hospital in Shanghai, Linfen Community Hospital in Jing'an District, Shanghai, set up a palliative care area on the second floor, and living here means giving up treatment, because there will be no treatment here, only special nurses to condole, and nurses to provide simple basic care. Here the patient is guaranteed to die peacefully and dignified.
When faced with the choice between life and death, there may not be a right answer to how to choose the right one. The debate about whether euthanasia should be legalized may continue for a long time. What do you think about this?
Resources:
1. "Xiehe Ning Xiaohong & Zhang Di: The current mainland does not have the objective premise for the legalization of euthanasia" Ding Xiangyuan2022-04-05
2. "The Dispute over the Legalization of Euthanasia: What Attitude Do We Face Death?" Beijing News, 2020-05-31
3. "China's First "Euthanasia" Hospital, Numb in Heart, Not Accepting Any Treatment, Just for Patients to Finish Their Lives with Dignity" Voice of Medicine2023-03-16
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