ABSTRACT
One of the most widely accepted and least criticized doctrines of medical ethics is that which allows painkillers to be taken by individuals in such doses that the recipient's life is unintentionally shortened. As this doctrine is rather vague and ambiguous as it now stands and has not been studied closely, it could readily be subjected to abuse by patients with suicidal aims. This chapter examines the context of the development of this doctrine in classical Catholic moral teaching and determines what precise sorts of actions this doctrine was initially supposed to permit since this teaching is the classic statement of the condition under which toxic analgesia could be taken by a patient. It also reviews the medical and clinical options now available to practitioners who might have to confront situations where they previously had to give potentially lethal doses of analgesia to patients in great pain. It also summarizes the capabilities of contemporary anesthesia.
