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Assisted suicide in the care of mentally ill patients: The Lucio Magri's case

2013; Elsevier BV; Volume: 21; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.jflm.2013.10.017

1878-7487

Paola Frati, Matteo Gulino, Paola Mancarella, Rossana Cecchi, Stefano Ferracuti,

Ethics and Legal Issues in Pediatric Healthcare

A year after Mario Monicelli's suicide, the death of another famous person in Italy, Lucio Magri, reawakened the Italian debate on social, ethical and juridical issues in end-of-life decisions. Unlike Monicelli, Lucio Magri decided to end his own life in Switzerland with the help of a physician because his mental illness rendered his life unbearable. Both Monicelli and Magri suffered from a severe depression. The authors analyze the ethical issues regarding the right to die for mentally ill patients and neurological disabled patients, discussing the decision-making autonomy in persons suffering from severe depression. The role of the psychiatry in the management of end-of-life decision requests is considered along with pros and cons of suicide prevention and rationale suicide.