The number of executions in the United States has increased as the acceptability of lethal injection has increased. Despite the opposition of professional organisations, healthcare professionals continue to participate. An American doctor describes parallels between America's use of lethal injection and Nazi Germany's “euthanasia” programme

The following shall be present … one (1) contract physician—(as designated by Health Services) to provide medical assistance during the execution process.1

On 6 November 2001, 45 year old prison inmate Jose High was led into a room at the Georgia Diagnostics and Classification Center in Jackson, Georgia, United States. The room would have looked familiar to a surgeon (or any doctor who performs procedures under sedation): it contained a trolley; cardiac monitor and defibrillator; medical equipment cabinets (including one for storing drugs); equipment stand; and the standard catheters, tubing, and sterile saline bags used to start intravenous lines. High lay down on the trolley, and a nurse tried to start a peripheral intravenous line. For more than 30 minutes, the nurse made several attempts to start the line at various locations, including High's right hand, right arm, right leg, and right foot. Finally, a doctor who worked under contract with the Georgia Diagnostics and Classification Center stepped in to help. He inserted a 7 French gauge, triple lumen, 20 cm long, central venous catheter into High's right subclavian vein. After the prison warden gave a signal, technicians injected thiopental sodium 6 g, pancuronium bromide 150 mg, and potassium chloride 360 mEq into High; this ended his life.