Making Sense of Physician Assisted Suicide

About this sermon

Dr. Lydia Dugdale argues that physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia are morally and medically dangerous because they normalize suicide, undermine the physician-patient covenant, and place vulnerable people at risk. This lecture was given on February 12th, 2026, at Vanderbilt University. For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events . About the Speakers: Dr. Lydia Dugdale is the Silberberg Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at Columbia University in New York City. As a medical doctor and ethicist, she cares for patients, consults on complex ethical issues in the hospital, and teaches medical trainees and undergraduate students. Her scholarly work focuses on physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia, the need to prepare well for death, and questions of moral injury and human flourishing. She is author of the book The Lost Art Of Dying: Reviving Forgotten Wisdom (HarperOne, 2020) and is currently writing a book on hope. Keywords: Autonomy, Canada, Euthanasia, MAID, Medical Ethics, Oregon, Physician Assisted Suicide, Suffering, Vulnerable Patients, Life And Death

Source: The Thomistic Institute