I watched this film today, and several times it made me really consider what I think about assisted suicide. Particular scenes were difficult to watch with strong emotional themes, I found the piece to be quite heavy going.
Dr Jack Kevorkian, played by Al Pacino, is compassionate about helping people to end their lives in order to escape suffering. He helped over 130 patients to end their lives using either potassium chloride or carbon dioxide gas. His strong feelings come from feeling lost and helpless after witnessing his mother suffer at the end of her life.
The first patient he assists is an ageing lady suffering from Alzheimer's disease. I found this scene quite unnerving to watch as the patient appears physically well and although she has mental deterioration, it is not at an advanced level (she can still currently function and live in her own home).However Dr Kevorkian still granted her wish and took her to the woods to use the 'Mercytron' in his camper van.
As a care assistant in a nursing home, I have day-to-day experience of working with elderly patients who are affected by dementia and confusion. The thought of giving one of these ladies I care for, the means to give themselves a lethal substance does not sit nicely in my mind.
Throughout the film, the related controversies are illustrated with many religious groups protesting outside court buildings and his own home. Dr Death, as he is known, finds himself sneaking around like a criminal helping these people to end their suffering whilst assisted suicide was still legal in Michigan.
The emotional accounts given by those suffering from numerous conditions, which are affecting the quality of their lives, helps Kevorkian to win numerous court cases. He feels that a doctor is a healing profession and that living in agony is not living at all. As an audience it makes us empathise with these individuals whose day-to-day lives are so painful that all they wish for is to end it.
There is a huge emphasis on a 'dignified death' something which is portrayed when helping most of the patients. However in 1993, after Kevorkian was struck off as a physician, there was an incident whilst helping Mr Gale, a patient seeking assistance to die. To save resources the doctor made a cage to go over the patients' head in order to reuse the CO2 gas; since he had lost his access to supplies. The patient was over heating and struggling in distress when the gas could not escape and asked for the 'treatment' to be stopped before proceeding with the suicide.Was this a dignified death? also did this patient have the mental capacity to make this decision? If he changed his mind, did he have some doubt about going through with it? This particular incident highlights lots of relevant issues against euthanasia and physician assisted suicide.
Jack faced constant battles with the law to help his patients and there as still debates now about whether this is murder. The court said that aiding suicide is the same as the common law of murder. However Jack challenged that common laws are outdated e.g. it is a crime to not worship god or to change your religious views and that the work he does could never be compared to murder.
Some may argue that he then went too far, others call him a hero. Dr Death performed active euthanasia for Tom Youk by injecting him with a lethal substance. Kevorkian wanted to fight for the patients' rights to choose to end their lives so produced a video which he hoped would bring supporters to help him tackles the supreme court. However in court Kevorkian was found guilty and given a 10-25 year sentence for murder.
In 2009 Jack was released at the age of 79 after 8 and a half years in prison. The supreme court refused to here his case.
Although this is a screen play, the following links demonstrate how real this story is and help to bring things back to the controversial debate on-going worldwide.
Tom's euthanasia
Hearing from Tom's brother
Interview after 8 years in prison
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