Incurable Ill Patients Attitudes Towards Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide

Incurable Ill Patients Attitudes to Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: A Prospective, Multi-Centre Trial in Palliative Care Units in Saxony

Euthanasia and assisted dying are of growing interest for patients with incurable diseases. The possible methods are widely discussed by patient-societies, physicians, lawyers, theologians and philosophers. During the last years several opinion-polls were conducted with healthy people or medical stuff, but no surveys were conducted to get the attitude of incurable ill patients.

The hypothesis of the investigators' study is: "Palliative Care Medicine is a better option for incurable ill patients than an assisted suicide."

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age >= 18 years
• Incurable illness
• Mental state thet allows to answer a questionnaire

Exclusion Criteria:

• Somnolence
• Low mental state
• Curable disease
• Depression with danger of acute suicide