Views of pharmacists on PAS
| Statements | Strongly Agree / Agree | Unsure | Strongly Disagree / Disagree | Total number | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | A patient has the right to choose to end his/her own life | 125 (70%) | 16 (9%) | 38 (21%) | 179 |
| 2. | A patient has the right to choose to die with the assistance of his/her physician | 102 (57%) | 27 (15%) | 58 (28%) | 179 |
| 3. | It is appropriate for a patient to use prescription medicines to commit suicide | 80 (45%) | 39 (22%) | 59 (33%) | 178 |
| 4. | A prescription medicine should not be used to end a life prematurely | 53 (30%) | 36 (21%) | 86 (49%) | 175 |
| 5. | A physician has a professional responsibility to alleviate suffering by issuing a prescription for PAS | 52 (29%) | 45 (25%) | 82 (46%) | 179 |
| 6. | It is a physician's professional responsibility not to act in such a way that a life is ended prematurely as in PAS | 61 (34%) | 53 (30%) | 65 (36%) | 179 |
| 7. | A pharmacist has a professional responsibility to dispense a prescription to be used in PAS, if that is what the patient wants | 82 (46%) | 30 (17%) | 66 (37%) | 178 |
| 8. | It is inappropriate for a pharmacist to provide the means of suicide by dispensing a prescription for use in PAS, as he/she should try to preserve life | 57 (32%) | 35 (20%) | 87 (48%) | 179 |
| 9. | It is appropriate for a physician not to inform a pharmacist about the nature of a prescription intended to be used in PAS | 67 (38%) | 34 (19%) | 77 (43%) | 178 |
| 10. | It is a pharmacist's right to know when his/her actions directly contribute to the planned death of a patient | 95 (53%) | 34 (19%) | 49 (28%) | 178 |
| 11. | It is appropriate for a pharmacist to refuse to dispense a prescription if he/she knows that it is to be used in PAS | 97 (54%) | 38 (21%) | 44 (25%) | 174 |
| 12. | There would be a danger that PAS could be abused to answer social problems, by encouraging those who are seen as a burden on society to take the “quick exit” | 108 (60%) | 28 (16%) | 43 (24%) | 179 |
| 13. | PAS should remain an unofficial matter between physician and patient, and as such, legislation is unnecessary | 58 (33%) | 31 (17%) | 88 (50%) | 177 |
| 14. | There needs to be a change in the law to allow PAS in Britain | 79 (44%) | 41 (23%) | 58 (33%) | 178 |
| 15. | Legislating for PAS is necessary, as it means that it will be regulated and cases dealt with appropriately | 91 (52%) | 40 (23%) | 45 (25%) | 176 |
| 16. | The advent of PAS in this country would harm the public's perception of pharmacists | 45 (25%) | 47 (26%) | 87 (49%) | 179 |