Nutrition and Hydration
Moral and Pastoral Reflections

Miscellaneous
Issued by the Committee for Pro-Life Activities
of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops
April 1992
Reproduced with Permission

Contents

• Introduction
• Moral Principles
• Questions About Medically Assisted Nutrition and Hydration
1. Is the withholding or withdrawing of medically assisted nutrition and hydration always a direct killing?
2. Is medically assisted nutrition and hydration a form of "treatment" or "care"?
3. What are the benefits of medically assisted nutrition and hydration?
4. What are the burdens of medically assisted nutrition and hydration?
5. What role should "quality of life" play in our decisions?
6. Do persistently unconscious patients represent a special case?
7. Who should make decisions about medically assisted nutrition and hydration?
• Conclusion
• Appendix: Technical Aspects of Medically Assisted Nutrition and Hydration
• Endnotes

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