Sedation, Suicide, and the Limits of Ethics

by James A., III Dunson (Author)

In this book, James Dunson explores end-of-life ethics including physician-assisted suicide (PAS) and continuous sedation until death. He argues that ethical debates currently ignore the experience of the dying patient in an effort to focus on policy creation, and proposes that the dying experience should instead be prioritized and used to inform policy development. The author makes the case that PAS should be recognized as a legally and morally permissible option for a very particular kind of patient: terminally ill with fewer than six months to live and capable of conscious consent. Since focusing on the patient's experience of this end-of-life dilemma transforms some of the basic concepts we use to engage in the PAS debate, the argument has implications for patient care and the training of medical professionals.

Review
Sedation, Suicide, and the Limits of Ethics is a highly readable book about an inherently wrenching subject. Dunson gives pride of place to the patient’s own perspective on end-of-life concerns, and he offers a rigorous but also refreshingly humane argument for a novel position in debates that concern us all. Because of its clarity and warmth of tone, Dunson’s book will be accessible to novices. And because of the force of his argument, the book will be challenging to experts in the field. (Eric Wilson, Georgia State University)

About the Author
James A. Dunson III is associate professor of philosophy at Xavier University of Louisiana



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