American Pain Society

The American Pain Society (APS) is the U.S. chapter of the International Association for the Study of Pain, a group of clinical researchers investigating the treatment of pain caused by human diseases. The following viewpoint is an APS position statement outlining the organization’s stance on symptom relief for terminally ill patients. The APS contends that the medical community must become more aggressive in treating the pain associated with fatal illnesses, particularly since severe pain can cause patients to long for death. Effective pain treatment should be emphasized over assisted suicide, the APS maintains; moreover, laws must protect health professionals whose use of painkilling drugs unintentionally hastens a patient’s death.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to the APS...