Assisted suicide and euthanasia from the perspective of professionals and academics in a university hospital

Abstract The objective of this study was to identify the attitude of professionals and academics in a university hospital regarding assisted suicide and euthanasia. The study was conducted using a questionnaire and included 354 participants. In cases of patients with terminal illnesses, 68.1% of participants supported the legalization of assisted suicide and 73.2% supported the legalization of euthanasia. The support for legalization of assisted suicide or euthanasia was 46.9% in cases of patients with progressive neurodegenerative diseases and 30.8% in cases of tetraplegia. In cases of terminal illnesses, if those were legalized, 45% of participants would commit assisted suicide, 57% would request euthanasia, 36.5% would aid in assisted suicide and 39.9% would aid in euthanasia. In conclusion, the great support for legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide among the participants emphasizes the need to broaden the discussion on the subject in the population.

摘要 本研究旨在明确某大学医院内专业人士与学者对辅助自杀（assisted suicide）与安乐死（euthanasia）的态度。本研究采用问卷调查法开展，共纳入354名参与者。针对终末期疾病患者，68.1%的参与者支持辅助自杀合法化，73.2%支持安乐死合法化；针对进行性神经退行性疾病患者，支持辅助自杀或安乐死合法化的比例为46.9%，而针对四肢瘫痪患者，该比例仅为30.8%。若针对终末期疾病患者的相关行为合法化，45%的参与者表示会实施辅助自杀，57%会请求安乐死，36.5%会协助实施辅助自杀，39.9%会协助实施安乐死。综上，参与者对安乐死与辅助自杀合法化的高度支持，凸显了在民众中拓宽该议题讨论范围的必要性。