IntroductionEuthanasia continues to be the subject of ethical debate. It is defined as the administration of lethal drugs by a person other than the person concerned with the explicit intention of ending the life of a patient, at the explicit request of the latter (Quaghebeur, de Casterle, & Gastmans, 2009). An unprecedented number of people in the United States today are living to the end of their adult lives. Improvements in medical and public health practices, increased life expectancy, and the “aging out” of the baby boom generation have all contributed to this phenomenon (Moulton, Hill, & Burdette, 2006). Euthanasia has been and always will be a topic of debate in the United States as Americans are living longer. Oregon, Washington and Montana are the only three states to have legalized assisted suicide in the United States. People's opinion is not only based on morals, but religious beliefs are also taken into account. Religion, faith, belief and, more generally, ideology and worldview involve more than simple participation in rituals or acceptance of certain doctrines. As religion and worldview are believed to impact all aspects of life, it can be assumed that religious and ideological beliefs will influence the professional attitudes and practices of healthcare professionals (Gielen, van den Branden and Broeckaert, 2009). become more of a social concern. Euthanasia is compared to birth control and abortion. Euthanasia is an attempt to control death, while birth control and abortion are attempts to control birth. With advances in life-sustaining technologies and continued increases in medical costs, euthanasia or the right to end one's life, while any hope of recovery...... middle of paper ... ...EUTHANASIA AND PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE. Nursing Ethics, 16(3), 303-318. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.Lavi, S.J. (2007). Euthanasia as public policy: The Euthanasia Society of America. In, Modern Art of Dying (pp. 99-125). Princeton University Press. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.MING-LIN CHONG, ALICE and FOK SHIU-YEU. 2009. “Attitudes toward euthanasia: Implications for social work practice.” Social Work in Health Care 48, no. 2:119-133. SocINDEX with full text, EBSCOhost (accessed March 1, 2011). Moulton, B., Hill, T. and Burdette, A. (2006) Religion and trends in attitudes toward euthanasia among American adults, 1977-2004. Sociological Forum, 21(2), 249-272. doi:10.1007/s11206-006-9015-5. Quaghebeur, T., de Casterle, B. and Gastmans, C. (2009). NURSES AND EUTHANASIA: A REVIEW OF THE ARGUMENT-BASED ETHICS LITERATURE. Nursing Ethics, 16(4), 466-486. Taken from EBSCOhost.