End of Life

Overview

The end of life can be a difficult and challenging time for individuals and families, particularly with respect to medical issues and concerns. The articles in this section address ethical issues that arise surrounding end-of-life care including withholding and withdrawing of treatment, terminal sedation, determination of death, DNR (“do not resuscitate”) orders, artificial nutrition and hydration (“feeding tubes”), euthanasia, assisted suicide, as well as the availability and opportunities associated with palliative medicine and hospice care. CBHD also provides an advance directive form in both English and Spanish.

SUGGESTED RESOURCES

  • Michael Sleasman, “Bioethics Past, Present, and Future: Important Signposts in Human Dignity” (An overview of bioethics and the breadth of issues it encompasses).
  • Harold O. J. Brown and Robert Orr, “Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Overview.”
  • Edward Grant, “Advance Medical Directives in the Era of Health Care Reform: Who Decides?”
  • Information on POLST: “Physical Death Is Certain and Permanent: A Review of the POLST Paradigm” and “Back to the Future? POLST and End-of-Life Law.”
  • Edward Grant, “Cracks in the Wall: Confronting the Legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia.”
  • Howard Ducharme and Robert Kingsbury, “Two Perspectives on Total/Terminal/Palliative Sedation.”
  • John Dunlop, “The Feeding Tube Dilemma: Key Questions.”
  • Robert Cranston, “Withholding or Withdrawing of Artificial Nutrition and Hydration.”
  • Audio resource on “The Cult of Human Health and the Key to Flourishing in Sickness: Excerpts from ‘Human Flourishing—In Sickness and in Health’” and “A Public Debate on Legalizing Physician Assisted Suicide.”
  • Video resources from our Academy of Fellow Consultations on “Hope for Youth and the Youth of Hope” and “Hope and Care at the End of Life.”

Bibliography

End of Life (General)

  • Bayertz, Kurt, ed. Sanctity of Life and Human Dignity. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer, 1996.
  • Berlinger, Nancy, Bruce Jennings, and Susan M. Wolf. The Hastings Center Guidelines for Decisions on Life-Sustaining Treatment and Care Near the End of Life, Revised and Expanded Second Edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013.
  • Bishop, Jeffrey. The Anticipatory Corpse: Medicine, Power, and the Care of the Dying. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame, 2011.
  • Blank, Robert H., and Janna C. Merrick, eds. End-of-Life Decision Making: A Cross-National Study. Basic Bioethics. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2005.
  • Byock, Ira. The Best Care Possible: A Physician's Quest to Transform Care Through the End of Life. New York: Penguin Group, 2012.
  • Cohen-Almagar, Raphael. The Right to Die with Dignity: An Argument in Ethics, Medicine, and Law. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2001.
  • Craddock, Fred, Dale Goldsmith, and Joy Goldsmith. Speaking of Dying: Recovering the Church's Voice in the Face of Death. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2012. ***
  • Csikai, Ellen L. and Elizabeth Chaitin. Ethics in End-of-Life Decisions in Social Work Practice. Lyceum Books, 2006.
  • Denier, Yvonne, Chris Gastmans, and Antoon Vandevelde, eds. Justice, Luck & Responsibility in Health Care: Philosophical Background and Ethical Implications for End-of-Life Care. New York: Springer, 2013.
  • Doka, Kenneth J. and Amy S. Tucci, eds. Beyond Kübler-Ross: New Perspectives on Death, Dying and Grief. Washington, DC: Hospice Foundation of America, 2011.
  • ______Living with Grief: Cancer and End-of-Life Care. Washington, DC: Hospice Foundation of America, 2010.
  • ______. End-of-Life Ethics: A Case Study Approach. Washington, DC: Hospice Foundation of America, 2012.
  • Dunlop, John. Finishing Well to the Glory of God. Wheaton: Crossway, 2011. ***
  • Emanuel, Ezekiel J. The Ends of Human Life: Medical Ethics in a Liberal Polity. Cambridge, MS: Harvard University Press, 1991.
  • Evans, Abigail Rian. Is God Still at the Bedside? The Medical, Ethical, and Pastoral Issues of Death and Dying. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011. ***
  • Fins, Joseph J. A Palliative Ethic of Care: Clinical Wisdom at Life's End. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett, 2005.
  • Fisher, Kenneth A., Lindsay E. Rockwell, and Missy Scott. In Defiance of Death: Exposing the Real Costs of End-of-Life Care. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2008.
  • Fitzpatrick, Jeanne, and Eileen Fitzpatrick. A Better Way of Dying: How to Make the Best Choices at the End of Life. New York: Penguin, 2010.
  • Friedman, Sandra L., and David T. Helm. End-of-Life Care for Children and Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Washington, DC: American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 2010.
  • Gaventa, William C., and David Coulter. End-of-Life Care: Bridging Disability and Aging with Person Centered Care. Binghamton, NY: Routledge, 2005.
  • Heller, Jan C., Cynthia B. Cohen, Bruce Jennings, E. F. Morgan, and David A. Scott, eds. Faithful Living, Faithful Dying: Anglican Reflections on End of Life Care. Nashville: Morehouse Publishing, 2000. ***
  • Jeffrey, David. Patient-Centered Ethics and Communication at the End of Life. Abingdon, UK: Radcliffe, 2006.
  • Jones, David Albert. Approaching the End: A Theological Exploration of Death and Dying. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. ***
  • Kelly, David F. Medical Care at the End of Life: A Catholic Perspective. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2006.
  • Kiernan, Stephen P. Last Rights: Rescuing the End of Life from the Medical System. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2006.
  • Kilner, John F., Arlene B. Miller, and Edmund D. Pellegrino, eds. Dignity and Dying: A Christian Appraisal. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996. ***
  • Lee, Robert. Death Rites: Law and Ethics at the End of Life. New York: Routledge, 1996.
  • Loewy, Erich E.H. The Ethics of Terminal Care: Orchestrating the End of Life. New York: Springer, 2000.
  • Lynn, Joanne, Janice Lynch Schuster, and Joan Harrold. Handbook for Mortals: Guidance for People Facing Serious Illness. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011.
  • Matzo, Marianne and Deborah Witt Sherman. Palliative Care Nursing: Quality Care to the End of Life. 4th ed. New York: Springer, 2015.
  • McCarthy, Joan, Mary Donnelly, Dolores Dooley and Louise Campbell. End-of-Life Care: Ethics and Law. Cork, Ireland: Cork University Press, 2011.
  • Moll, Rob. The Art of Dying: Living Fully in the Life to Come. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2010. ***
  • Morris, Wally. A Time to Die: A Biblical Look at End of Life Issues. Greenville, SC: Ambassador International, 2014.
  • Morrissey, Mary Beth and Bruce Jennings, eds. Partners in Palliative Care: Enhancing Ethics in Care at the End-of-Life. New York: Routledge, 2012.
  • Prado, C. G. Coping with Choices to Die. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011.
  • Quill, Timothy E. Caring for Patients at the End of Life: Facing an Uncertain Future Together. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
  • Smith, Stephen W. End-of-Life Decisions in Medical Care: Principles and Policies for Regulating the Dying Process. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
  • Stewart, Gary, et al. Basic Questions on End of Life Decisions: How Do We Know What's Right? Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1998. ***
  • Sumner, L. W. Assisted Death: A Study in Ethics and Law. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011.
  • Swinton, John, and Richard Payne, eds. Living Well and Dying Faithfully: Christian Practices for End-of-Life Care. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009. ***
  • Terman, Stanley A., Ronald B. Miller, and Michael S. Evans, eds. The Best Way to Say Goodbye: A Legal Peaceful Choice at the End of Life. Carlsbad, CA: Life Transitions, 2007.
  • Verhey, Allen. The Christian Art of Dying: Learning from Jesus. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011. ***
  • Weisstub, David N., David C. Thomasma, Serge Gauthier, and G.F. Tomossy, eds. Aging: Decisions at the End of Life. New York: Springer, 2001.
  • Werth Jr., James L. and Dean Blevins. Decision making near the End of Life: Issues, Developments, and Future Directions. New York: Routledge, 2009.
  • Williamson, Laura. Impairment and Disability: Law and Ethics at the Beginning and End of Life. New York: Routledge, 2006.
  • Woods, Simon. Death's Dominion: Ethics at the End of Life. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2007.

Out of Print

  • Baergen, Ralph. Ethics at the End of Life. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000.
  • Byock, Ira. Dying Well: The Prospect for Growth at the End of Life. New York: Riverhead, 1997.
  • Caes, David, ed. Caring for the Least of These: Serving Christ among the Poor. Scottdale, PA: Herald, 1992.
  • Cameron, Nigel M. de S., ed. Death without Dignity. Edinburgh: Rutherford House, 1990. ***
  • Farb, Daniel, Cyndie Koopsen, and Caroline Young. End of Life Care Issues. Los Angeles:  University of Health Care, 2005.
  • Hendin, Herbert. Seduced by Death: Doctors, Patients, and the Dutch Cure. New York: W.W. Norton, 1997.
  • Hurwitz, Peter Joel, Jacques Picard, Avraham Steinberg, and Benjamin Sklarz. Jewish Ethics and the Care of End-of-Life Patients: A Collection of Rabbinical, Bioethical, Philosophical, and Juristic Opinions. KTAV, 2006.
  • Kiernan, Stephen. Last Rights: Rescuing the End of Life from the Medical System. New York: St. Martin's, 2006.
  • Kilner, John F. Life on the Line: Ethics, Aging, Ending Patients Lives and Allocating Vital Resources. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1992. ***
  • __________. Who Lives? Who Dies? Ethical Criteria in Patient Selection. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1990. ***
  • La Puma, John, and David Schiedermayer. Pocket Guide to Managed Care: Business, Practice, Law, and Ethics. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1995.
  • Lynn, Joanne, Janice Lynch Schuster, and Andrea Kabcenell. Improving Care for the End of Life: A Sourcebook for Health Care Managers and Clinicians. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
  • Marker, Rita. Deadly Compassion. New York: Avon, 1995.
  • Pope John Paul II. Evangelium Vitae ("The Gospel of Life"). Eleventh Encyclical. New York: Pauline Books & Media, 1995. ***
  • Smith, Wesley J. Culture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America. San Francisco: Encounter, 2000. (e-book edition available)

Euthanasia

  • Conlon, Anne, ed. The Reach of Roe: Eugenics, Euthanasia, and Other Assaults on the Dignity of Human Life (1975-2012). New York: Human Life Foundation, 2013.
  • Cundiff, David. Euthanasia Is Not the Answer. New York: Humana Press, 1992.
  • DeCesare, Michael. Death on Demand: Jack Kevorkian and the Right-to-Die Movement. Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield, 2015.
  • Dowbiggin, Ian. A Concise History of Euthanasia: Life, Death, God, and Medicine. New York: Roman & Littlefield Publishers, 2007.
  • Dowbiggin, Ian. A Merciful End: The Euthanasia Movement in Modern America. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
  • Fink, Sheri. Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital. New York: Crown Publishers, 2013.
  • Haerens, Margaret. Euthanasia: Opposing Viewpoints. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2015.
  • Jackson, Emily and John Keown. Debating Euthanasia. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2012.
  • Keown, John. Euthanasia, Ethics, and Public Policy: An Argument against Legalisation. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  • __________, ed. Euthanasia Examined: Ethical, Clinical, and Legal Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
  • Moreno, Jonathan. Arguing Euthanasia: The Controversy over Mercy Killing, Assisted Suicide, and the "Right to Die." New York: Touchstone, 1995.
  • Nitschke, Philip and Fiona Stewart. Killing Me Softly: Voluntary Euthanasia and the Road to the Peaceful Pill. 2nd ed. Melbourne: Exit International, 2011.
  • Norwood, Frances. The Maintenance of Life: Preventing Social Death through Euthanasia Talk and End-of-Life Care—Lessons from The Netherlands. Durham: Carolina Academic Press, 2009.
  • Pappas, Demetra M. The Euthanasia/Assisted-Suicide Debate. Santa Barbara: Greenwood, 2012.
  • Somerville, Margaret. Death Talk: The Case against Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide. 2nd ed. McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2014.

Out of Print

  • Blocher, Mark. The Right to Die? Caring Alternatives to Euthanasia. Chicago: Moody, 1999.
  • Gorsuch, Neil M. The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006.
  • Horan, Dennis J., and David Mall, eds. Death, Dying, and Euthanasia. Frederick, MD: University Publications of America, 1980.
  • Larson, Edward J., and Darrel W. Amundsen. A Different Death: Euthanasia and the Christian Tradition. Downers Grove: IVP, 1998.
  • Manning, Michael. Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1998.
  • Patterson, Craig. Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2008.
  • Pollard, Brian. The Challenge of Euthanasia. Crows Nest, Australia: Little Hills, 1994.
  • Spring, Beth, and Ed Larson. Euthanasia: Medical and Legal Issues in Terminal Health Care. Portland, OR: Multnomah, 1988.
  • Stewart, Gary, William R. Cutrer, Timothy J. Demy, Donal P O'Mathuna, Paige C. Cunningham, John F. Kilner, and Linda K. Bevington. Basic Questions on Suicide and Euthanasia: Are They Ever Right? Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2003 ***
  • Tada, Joni Eareckson. When Is It Right to Die? Suicide, Euthanasia, Suffering, and Mercy. Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1992. ***
  • Willke, Jack C., ed. Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: Past and Present. Cincinnati: Hayes, 1998.

Physician-Assisted Suicide

  • Birnbacher, Dieter, and Edgar Dahl, eds. Giving Death a Helping Hand: Physician-Assisted Suicide and Public Policy. An International Perspective. New York: Springer, 2008.
  • Dyck, Arthur J. Life's Worth: The Case against Assisted Suicide. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002. ***
  • Ekland-Olson, Sheldon and Elyshia Aseltin. How Ethical Systems Change: Tolerable Suffering and Assisted Dying. New York: Routledge, 2012.
  • Humphry, Derek. Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying, 3rd ed. New York: Dell Publishing, 2002.
  • Jeffrey, David. Against Physician Assisted Suicide: A Palliative Care Perspective. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2008.
  • Lewy, Guenter. Assisted Death in Europe and America: Four Regimes and Their Lessons. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011.
  • Moreno, Jonathan. Arguing Euthanasia: The Controversy over Mercy Killing, Assisted Suicide, and the "Right to Die. New York: Touchstone, 1995.
  • Pappas, Demetra M. The Euthanasia/Assisted-Suicide Debate. Santa Barbara: Greenwood, 2012.
  • Quill, Timothy E. and Margaret P. Battin, eds. Physician-Assisted Dying: The Case for Palliative Care & Patient Choice. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004.
  • Tada, Joni Eareckson. When Is It Right to Die? Suicide, Euthanasia, Suffering, and Mercy. Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1992. ***
  • Willke, Jack C., ed. Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: Past and Present. Cincinnati: Hayes, 1998.
  • Youngner, Stuart J. and Gerrit K. Kimsma, eds. Physician-Assisted Death in Perspective: Assessing the Dutch Experience. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Out of Print

  • Bell, Reed, and Frank York. Prescription Death: Compassionate Killers in the Medical Profession. Lafayette, LA: Huntington House, 1993.
  • Gorsuch, Neil M. The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. (e-book edition available)
  • Manning, Michael. Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1998. (e-book edition available)
  • Orfali, Robert. Death with Dignity: The Case of Legalizing Physician-Assisted Dying and Euthanasia. Minneapolis, MN: Mill City Press, 2011. (e-book edition available)
  • Patterson, Craig. Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2008.
  • Smith, Wesley. Forced Exit: The Slippery Slope from Assisted Suicide to Murder. Rev ed. New York: Times, 1997.

Suffering & Grief

  • Carson, D. A. How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering and Evil. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006. ***
  • Cassell, Eric J. The Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Medicine. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.
  • Craddock, Fred, Dale Goldsmith, and Joy Goldsmith. Speaking of Dying: Recovering the Church's Voice in the Face of Death. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2012. ***
  • Hauerwas, Stanley. Suffering Presence. University of Notre Dame, 1986. ***
  • Keller, Timothy. Walking with God through Pain and Suffering. New York: Penguin, 2013.
  • Kübler-Ross, Elisabeth and David Kessler. On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss. New York: Scribner, 2014.
  • Lewis, C.S. A Grief Observed. HarperOne, 2015. ***
  • Lewis, C.S. The Problem of Pain. New York: HarperCollins, 2009.
  • Long, Thomas G. What Shall We Say? Evil, Suffering, and the Crisis of Faith. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011. ***
  • Mitsch, Raymond R., and Lynn Brookside. Grieving the Loss of Someone You Love. Ann Arbor, MI: Servant, 1993.
  • Piper, John and Justin Taylor, eds. Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2006.
  • Rice, Richard. Suffering and the Search for Meaning: Contemporary Responses to the Problem of Pain. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 2014.
  • Tada, Joni Eareckson. A Place of Healing: Wrestling with the Mysteries of Suffering, Pain, and God’s Sovereignty. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010.
  • Verhey, Allen. The Christian Art of Dying: Learning from Jesus. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011. ***
  • Zacharias, Ravi and Vince Vitale. Why Suffering? Finding Meaning and Comfort When Life Doesn’t Make Sense. New York: FaithWords, 2014.

Out of Print

  • Doka, Kenneth J., and Joyce Davidson, eds. Living with Grief: When Illness is Prolonged. Washington, DC: Hospice Foundation of America, 1997.
  • Feinberg, John. Where Is God? 2nd ed. Nashville: Broadman & Holmann, 2004. ***
  • Hauerwas, Stanley. God, Medicine, and Suffering. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990. ***
  • Tada, Joni Eareckson. When Is It Right to Die? Suicide, Euthanasia, Suffering, and Mercy. Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1992. ***

Suicide

  • Battin, Margaret Pabst. The Ethics of Suicide: Historical Sources. Oxford University Press, 2015.
  • Cholbi, Michael. Suicide: The Philosophical Dimensions. Buffalo: Broadview Press, 2011.
  • Hauerwas, Stanley. "Rational Suicide and Reasons for Living." In On Moral Medicine: Theological Perspectives in Medical Ethics, edited by Stephen Lammers and Allen Verhey, 671-678. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987. ***
  • Jamison, Kay Redfield. Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide. New York: Borzoi Books, 1999.
  • Mason, Karen. Preventing Suicide: A Handbook for Pastors, Chaplains and Pastoral Counselors. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 2014.
  • Shea, Shawn Christopher. The Practical Art of Suicide Assessment: A Guide for Mental Health Professionals and Substance Abuse Counselors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons, 2002.
  • Szasz, Thomas. Fatal Freedom: The Ethics and Politics of Suicide. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 1999.

Out of Print

  • Demy, Timothy J., and Gary P. Steward. Suicide: A Christian Response; Crucial Considerations for Choosing Life. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1998. ***

Withholding & Withdrawing Treatment

  • English, Veronica. Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Prolonging Medical Treatment. 3rd ed. BMJ Books, 2007.
  • Hastings Center. Guidelines on the Termination of Life-Sustaining Treatment and the Care of the Dying. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1987
  • Kelly, David F. Critical Care Ethics: Treatment Decisions in American Hospitals. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2002.
  • Schneiderman, Lawrence J. and Nancy S. Jecker. Wrong Medicine: Doctors, Patients, and Futile Treatment. Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011.
  • Tollefsen, Christopher. Artificial Nutrition and Hydration: The New Catholic Debate. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer, 2010.

Out of Print

  • Caplan, Arthur L., James J. McCartney, and Dominic A. Sisti, eds. The Case of Terri Schiavo: Ethics at the End of Life. Amherst, NY: Prometheus, 2006.
  • McHaffie, Hazel. Critical Decisions at the Beginning of Life: Parents' Experiences of Treatment Withdrawal from Infants. Ashland, OH: Radcliffe Publishing Ltd., 2001.
  • Schemmer, Kenneth E. Between Life and Death: The Life-support Dilemma. Wheaton: Victor, 1988. ***

For related materials, also consult the Clinical & Medical Ethics, Disability Ethics, and Human Dignity Bibliographies.

*** Designates Christian Resource

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