Rational and Assisted Suicidal Communication on the Internet: A Case Example and Discussion of Ethical and Practice Issues

The development of ethical and practice guidelines related to mental health service on the Internet has lagged behind the movement of practitioners into this area. Even for clinicians who are not offering services on the Web, the Internet has led to confusion and concern about proper roles and responsibilities. This article discusses an actual experience we had with a self-described rationally suicidal man with multiple sclerosis (MS). After presenting some background on MS, we report initial interactions with the man verbatim and summarize subsequent correspondence in an analysis of the man's claim that his decision to die was well reasoned and that he should be allowed a physician's assistance.