Using a Living Will to Facilitate Suicide

An interesting article came up over the weekend about using a letter as a "living will" in England to commit suicide. Look here for the full article.

A woman wrote a letter three days before she poisoned herself with antifreeze. In the letter, she stated that she might arrive via ambulance (that she herself had called), but wanted no lifesaving measures and only wanted to be made comfortable. When she administered the antifreeze to herself and called the ambulance, she brought the letter with her and gave it to the doctors. The doctors obeyed her wishes, fearing assault charges if they disobeyed what they believed to be her clear intent (which she had the capacity to express). She died afterward.

A few interesting questions here. Is this a living will? I suppose so, although it doesn't meet the legal standard codified in New Jersey law (two witnesses, notarized, etc). It does at least give some indication of the intent of the testator, even if it's limited to something like suicide. It also indicates that there is capacity, and that the person did think about this before penning the document. However, did the medical staff act ethically in allowing the patient to die? Apparently so. However, I don't like the precedent this sets. Especially where there is a clear public policy against suicide in the United States, using a living will to facilitate suicide places the medical and legal professions in conflict. The law should protect doctors who want to contradict the wishes of their patients in this kind of circumstance, and/or invalidate living wills purportedly used for this purpose.