The Role of Critical Care Nurses in Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide

To the Editor: As a clinical nurse specialist and cochairperson of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania's ethics committee, I am compelled to respond to Asch's study (May 23 issue) 1 by stating that this research has unnecessarily induced public distrust and fear of hospital care. In newspapers across the country, this study generated dramatic headlines, including “One in five nurses help patients die” ( USA Today ) and “In Penn Survey, one in five nurses admits to mercy-killing” ( Philadelphia Daily News ). I know of several instances during the week following the publication of the study in which . . .