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Dignified death, death with dignity, dying with dignity or dignity in dying is an ethical concept that refers to the end-of-life process avoiding
suffering Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence of a ...
and maintaining
control Control may refer to: Basic meanings Economics and business * Control (management), an element of management * Control, an element of management accounting * Comptroller (or controller), a senior financial officer in an organization * Controllin ...
and
autonomy In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...
. In general, it is usually treated as an extension of the concept of dignified life, in which people retain their
dignity Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. It is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable ...
and
freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...
until the end of their existence. Although a dignified death can be
natural Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...
and without any type of assistance, the concept is frequently associated with the
right to die The right to die is a concept based on the opinion that human beings are entitled to end their life or undergo voluntary euthanasia. Possession of this right is often understood that a person with a terminal illness, incurable pain, or without t ...
, as well as with the defense of the legalization of practices such as
voluntary euthanasia Voluntary euthanasia (VE) is the ending of a person's life at their request in order to relieve them of suffering. Voluntary euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (PAS) have been the focus of intense debate in recent years. Some forms of ...
,
physician-assisted suicide Assisted suicide is suicide undertaken with the aid of another person. The term usually refers to physician-assisted suicide (PAS), which is suicide that is assisted by a physician or other healthcare provider. Once it is determined that the p ...
,
terminal sedation In medicine, specifically in end-of-life care, palliative sedation (also known as terminal sedation, continuous deep sedation, or sedation for intractable distress of a dying patient) is the palliative practice of relieving distress in a terminall ...
or the
refusal of medical assistance In emergency medical services such as an ambulance squad, a refusal of medical assistance is the term for when a patient refuses any or all parts of medical treatment. Background The refusal of medical assistance, or RMA, ensures the continuum of ...
. According to its defenders, the possibility of this type of practices would be what would guarantee a dignified death, keeping free decisions until the last moment and avoiding an unnecessary agony.


See also

* Death with dignity (disambiguation) *
Right to die The right to die is a concept based on the opinion that human beings are entitled to end their life or undergo voluntary euthanasia. Possession of this right is often understood that a person with a terminal illness, incurable pain, or without t ...
*
Assisted dying (disambiguation) Assisted dying, assisted death, aid in dying or help to die may refer to: * Assisted suicide, help or assistance to another person to end his or her life * Euthanasia, the practice of intentionally ending a life to relieve pain and suffering * Pall ...


References

{{Authority control Death Bioethics