Docs for selective euthanasia

The families of the six patients in a vegetative state with no hope of recovery at AIIMS’ trauma centre can now appeal to the high court for being granted euthanasia, in accordance with the Supreme Court verdict on Monday.

The families of the six patients in a vegetative state with no hope of recovery at AIIMS’ trauma centre can now appeal to the high court for being granted euthanasia, in accordance with the Supreme Court verdict on Monday.

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“These patients will never recover. They can’t be sent home as their families have spent all their money and savings to keep them alive,” said Dr Deepak Aggarwal, assistant professor neurosurgery at the trauma centre.

The trauma centre observes patients for one year before declaring them vegetative.

“I’m personally in favour of euthanasia. It is a huge drain on the country’s resources. We should gracefully let these patients go rather than torture them and their families,” Aggarwal said.

Cardiac surgeon Naresh Trehan, chairman of Medanta The Medicity, says moral issues had to be considered. “The biggest concern around the world about euthanasia is whether humans can play the God, and also if the law can be abused,” he said.

“Ordinarily, if a life is not functional, it is not worth continuing. How long you can actively keep intervening to prolong a life is the question. There should be a point where we should be able to stop intervening,” he added.