© 2004 Archives of Disease in Childhood Fetal and Neonatal Edition
COMMENTARY
Euthanasia
Should euthanasia be legal? An international survey of neonatal intensive care units staff
Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
R W Cooke;
Neonatal Unit, Liverpool Women’s Hospital, Crown Street, Liverpool, L8 7SS; mc19@liv.ac.uk
A commentary on the paper by Cuttini et al
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
The members of the EURONIC group have investigated the attitudes and practice of nurses and doctors with regard to euthanasia in neonatal units throughout Europe. Not surprisingly, they have found a wide range of beliefs and actions concerning an act that remains illegal for the newborn in all the countries studied. The group begin helpfully by defining what they mean by euthanasia, as debate is often confused by different understandings of what it means. Definitions range from "ending life...as by lethal injection or the suspension of extraordinary treatment" to "act of killing painlessly (especially one suffering from an incurable illness)". In the United Kingdom especially, doctors often distinguish between "active" and "passive" euthanasia (the latter involving withdrawal of intensive care), despite ethicists denying a difference between these actions if the intention is to end life. Those supporting withdrawal of care in selected cases argue that their intention is to
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