Synopsis
Prescription: Medicide, The Goodness of Planned Death by Jack Kevorkian, published in 1991 by Prometheus Books, is a provocative and controversial manifesto that articulates the author’s radical views on euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide, and the potential for medical benefits derived from death. Kevorkian, an American pathologist and right-to-die activist famously dubbed the “suicide doctor,” uses the book to defend his advocacy for “medicide,” a term he coins for euthanasia performed by medical professionals. Far from focusing solely on assisted suicide for the terminally ill, the book delves into Kevorkian’s broader vision of transforming societal attitudes toward death, including his controversial proposal to allow death row inmates to donate their organs or bodies for medical experimentation. Written in a direct, often confrontational style, the book reflects Kevorkian’s frustration with what he sees as the medical establishment’s “stone-age ethics” in the face of “space-age medicine,” arguing for a rational, humane approach to planned death that prioritizes patient autonomy and societal benefit.
Kevorkian begins by recounting the evolution of his thinking, tracing his ideas back to his days as a medical resident when he became fascinated with death and its potential for medical advancement. He describes his early efforts to persuade legislators and prison officials to allow condemned prisoners to choose execution by general anesthesia, enabling organ harvesting or experimentation on their bodies. Kevorkian argues that such a policy would not only respect the autonomy of inmates but also address organ shortages and advance medical science. He provides a historical overview of execution methods, from beheading to electrocution, to underscore the brutality of current practices and contrast them with his proposed humane alternative. This section, often graphic and unsettling, aims to challenge readers’ moral assumptions about death and punishment, though Kevorkian’s strident tone and dismissive references to opponents as “hypocritical oafs” can alienate readers seeking a more nuanced discussion.
The book then shifts to Kevorkian’s advocacy for physician-assisted suicide, particularly for terminally ill patients suffering from unbearable pain or debilitating conditions. He details the development of his “Mercitron,” a “suicide machine” that allows patients to self-administer a lethal injection, emphasizing its role in granting dignified, autonomous deaths. Kevorkian recounts his first publicly acknowledged assisted suicide in 1990, involving Janet Adkins, an Alzheimer’s patient, which thrust him into the national spotlight and sparked legal battles that eventually led to his imprisonment. He argues that “medicide” is an ethical necessity, criticizing the medical profession’s adherence to the Hippocratic Oath and traditional bioethics as outdated and harmful, prolonging patient suffering under the guise of preserving life. Kevorkian asserts that his machine renders moral objections obsolete by empowering patients to control their own deaths, though critics, as noted in reviews, find this claim overly simplistic.