Summary:

In the times of mental disorder epidemics palliative medicine is facing big challenges of how to tackle end of life distress in patients, whose biggest suffering is of not of somatic but rather psychological origins. Despite of having current psychopharmacological tools, these seem to be accompanied by many adverse effects and are ineffective in many patients, forcing the experts to study alternative methods such as psychedelic assisted psychotherapy. This paper is addressing the issues of such a novel approach as psychedelic assisted psychotherapy is and responding the major ethical concerns surrounding these drugs. Considering the legal status of psychedelic drug, careful approach is applied to ensure, that this new therapeutic method, which is now being studied, is of no harm to the patients, providing substantial benefits to the wellbeing of the ill in accordance with the basic ethical principles. In conclusion this paper is highlighting the importance of re-examining psychedelic assisted psychotherapy as a palliative treatment to the patients with terminal illness, who are suffering from anticipatory grief and to who it ought to be helped to come to peace during the last months of their lives.

Key words: ethics | psychedelics | palliative care | terminal illness