PATIENT’S LAST WILL: EUTHANASIA AND THE RIGHT TO DETERMINE HIS OR HER OWN DESTINY

Modern man believes that their life should be completely under their control and anything that does not fall in this category is automatically ignored by them. This autonomy should also last until the very end of one's life. Scientific and technological developments in medicine in the treatment of severe patients have made significant advances in the recent years, enabling life prolongation also in the cases when it might be contrary to the patient's and relatives' will and the doctor's opinion. At times when the lives of unconscious incurable patients are sustained and prolonged through complete dependence on machines, the situation is nothing but a meaningless prolongation of agony. When the individual is fully conscious, they make a statement in their last will to respect their autonomy at the end of their lives also in the cases when they are unconscious or are unable to express their wishes rationally, for example when suffering from such conditions as dementia or Alzheimer's disease. This paper aims to address the issue of patient's advance decision, which is a fairly new concept to Turkish medical environment. The discussion of patient autonomy, euthanasia and self-determination is supplemented with examples for additional clarity.