assisted death

[madchives]

the supreme court is once again going to rule on this.

last time was the sue rodriguez case and they ruled - no.

a bit of history, which broke my heart

Rodriguez v British Columbia (AG) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rodriguez v British Columbia (AG) - Wikipedia, the free ...Rodriguez v British Columbia (AG) [1993] 3 S.C.R. 519 is a landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision where the prohibition of assisted suicide was challenged as con...
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Dying on her own terms

Dying on her own termsSue Rodriguez decides she wants to fight for the legal right to die.
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a few people since then have left this country
to be able to legally die in another whilst
still able to say goodby.
and as any one knows the extra morphine
drip is available from most doctors here,
and of course that is when you almost/or
are unable to do it yourself, or say much if anything.
'whose body is this?' still rings true for me.

Supreme Court to rule today whether doctors can help patients die

Supreme Court to rule today whether doctors can help pat...Canada's top court will rule Friday on a question it last considered more than 20 years ago: should it be legal for doctors to help dying patients kill themselves?
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[trishka]

SCC has unanimously struck down the law

[trishka]

Doctor-assisted suicide allowed by Supreme Court in specific cases
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/doct...ases-1.2947487

Some highlights:

The ruling only applies to competent adults with enduring, intolerable suffering who clearly consent to ending their lives.

The court says the charter right to life doesn't require an absolute prohibition on assistance in dying.

"This would create a 'duty to live,' rather than a 'right to life,' and would call into question the legality of any consent to the withdrawal or refusal of lifesaving or life-sustaining treatment," the court wrote in the decision.

The court also found an individual's response to "a grievous and irremediable medical condition" is a matter critical to their dignity and autonomy. The law already allows palliative sedation, refusing artificial nutrition and hydration and refusing life-sustaining medical equipment.

"And, by leaving people ... to endure intolerable suffering, it impinges on their security of the person," the court wrote.

[frugal50]

best. news. ever.

no one should suffer at their last stage in life.

[Lynn49]

Too late for my Friend who suffered in unbearable pain to the end with ALS, writing the word, "DIE" everywhere she could...on her whiteboard, her sheets, even on herself!!!! NO ONE deserves to suffer like she did! NO ONE!
Finally people like her will find the relief they so desperately want and need....

[TaraF]

Omgoodness Lynn, I teared up reading your post. You are absolutely right, no one should suffer like that.

[TaraF]

I also prefer the term doctor assisted death rather than suicide. But that's just me. Either way I am so happy to hear that this is just another choice that will be available to people. And that's the key word: Choice. If there was better palliative care options for terminally ill patients near end of life then perhaps euthanasia may never even cross their minds. But at least now with this ruling (once all of the details are sorted out) the option will be available.

[madchives]

Too late for my Friend who suffered in unbearable pain to the end with ALS, writing the word, "DIE" everywhere she could...on her whiteboard, her sheets, even on herself!!!! NO ONE deserves to suffer like she did! NO ONE!
Finally people like her will find the relief they so desperately want and need....

i remember you mentioning your friend before lynn, and of course broke my heart, how awful
can't imagine watching anyone needing to write the word 'DIE'.

thought long after the post that maybe i should have included a poll, but from
what i see why bother - we seem to be on the same page.

[Lynn49]

I also prefer the term doctor assisted death rather than suicide. But that's just me. Either way I am so happy to hear that this is just another choice that will be available to people. And that's the key word: Choice. If there was better palliative care options for terminally ill patients near end of life then perhaps euthanasia may never even cross their minds. But at least now with this ruling (once all of the details are sorted out) the option will be available.

Tara, that's exactly what I said to my hubby as we watched the announcement and interviews....it's not suicide. He asked me what a better term would be and I said, "release"...not that it can be used like 'doctor assisted death', but 'doctor assisted release' sounds good to me. The word 'suicide' is a negative word, iykwim...loaded with too much emotion...The God I believe in doesn't need us to suffer so horrifically to the end.......

[frugal50]

i also watched someone die a painful death of ALS, which was totally unnecessary

if they can put animals to sleep to end their suffering, it's about time humans get the same respect.

[22hicks]

This is a subject near & dear to my heart. Both my parents, and my husband, died after suffering horrible pain for a years before, mercifully, they went to be with the angels.
Remember that movie 'They Shoot Horses Don't They'? EXACTLY !!!!!!!

[TaraF]

I think it is really sad that you have to make it so personal for people to see it from a different angle. I'd never wish the pain of watching someone suffer on another, so all I would ask is that people visualize a dear family member suffering near end of life and ask themselves how they could deny them a death with less pain if that is what they want.

My mom is a deeply religious woman and so we've had the discussion many times and the other day she said to me "but it's still suicide". So I said to her "no one is arguing that it isn't. If you want to deem it suicide because a life is being taken un-naturally, no one is taking that from you."

But then I made it really personal for her by using myself and my illness as an example. Well I totally won her over on the debate of dying with dignity. My husband, myself and my mother all share accommodations, it works for us. So I said to her that god forbid one day my cancer ravaged my body to the point where I was in so much pain and I knew I was going to die. There as no hope, no further treatment, I just was waiting to die and treatment was simply to try and make me comfortable until death.

But sadly those treatments are not working. Would she rather come into my room one morning and find me having been so desperate to escape the pain that I took the route of slitting my wrists, or throat, etc, or even taking some pills, and finding my body one day? Having her last memory of me being that she found my dead body in the home we share? Or, would she rather her last memory of me be that I was in a bed, as comfortable as I could be, surrounded by family and friends, as I was tucked in under some sheets, with a smile on my face surrounded by those I love as I pass away enveloped with love?

I know what I would prefer should my situation deteriorate so badly that I felt like I needed a physical release from this body due to my cancer. And I really don't think that any one has the right to tell me I shouldn't be able to do so. You don't want to die with dignity, you don't have to. Let nature take it's course, but others should be allowed the option.

[Patty Smyth]

I am for it. Glad people now have a choice. Would I do it? I guess I will know when I get there.

[TaraF]

Patty in the end it should just be about choices. What is right for one person won't be right for the next one. That's fine, but just because it isn't right for one person doesn't mean it shouldn't be available for the next. And I'm glad that it will be available for those that need it.

[Lynn49]

It infuriates me to see and hear a woman like the one they interviewed when the announcement was made, who was worried that now SHE and others like her aren't safe anymore and that now she'll feel like she has to end her life or have it ended for her.
CRAZY!!
Yes, Honey. I'm going to drag you kicking and screaming into the doctor's office and ask him to euthanise you. That'll work.
Some people need to get familiar with facts before they open their mouths!