Impact on doctor/patient relationship It will surely involve major changes in the law, which could have serious consequences for the doctor/patient relationship. ‘First do no harm’, is frequently bandied about and whatever the origin, it is a maxim that means patients can hold us to the...
As more and more states consider passing assisted suicide policy, it is important for Americans to realize that this dangerous policy puts vulnerable lives, like mine and my children’s, at risk. In 2012, I was facing what appeared to be a hopeless situation. In spite of...
Kristen Hanson, Community Relations Advocate As 2019 comes to an end, and we begin to make plans for the year ahead, I am reminded that time is precious. Nearly two years ago, I lost my husband, JJ, to terminal brain cancer. Although we couldn’t save JJ’s life,...
A panel of experts is recommending the Quebec government expand access to medical aid in dying. In recommendations made public today, the group said people should be allowed to make advance directives requesting a doctor-assisted death, which is not allowed under current law. The panel suggests that to...
Several claims about assisted suicide that were made in an opinion piece published Nov. 21 were dangerous and inaccurate. The author of the piece, who belongs to a national organization pushing for the legalization of assisted suicide across the United States, claimed the practice was...
The RCGP is consulting members on its assisted suicide stance - currently, opposition. Their definition of 'assisted dying' does not mention terminal illness and could thus embrace doctors assisting the suicides of disabled, elderly and psychologically ill people. Can GPs really be 'neutral'? Watch the video here...
Only three countries approve of assisted suicide and euthanasia as a whole: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. The first two even recognize requests from minors under strict circumstances, while Luxembourg excludes them from the legislation. Switzerland, Germany, Finland, and Austria allow assisted suicide under specific scenarios. Read...
Here are five things to know to help dispel some of the misunderstandings about hospice care. 1. Hospice isn't about 'giving up.' Hospice can extend your life. Hospice is often associated with ideas of giving up or surrendering to death. Statistics show otherwise. Studies published in 2007 by the...
There has been a flurry of discourse in the media regarding ways to make medically assisted death more accessible for Canadians, including reports on the Quebec ruling to overturn the criterion that one’s death must be “reasonably foreseeable” and the Alzheimer Society of Canada position...
The state’s medical aid in dying law "legalizes murder,” and no doctor in New Jersey should be required to do anything to help carry it out, including the routine act of releasing a patient’s file, an attorney for a devoutly religious physician and a pharmacist...