The issue of euthanasia and assisted suicide has come to the fore again as Canada’s doctors meet at the Canadian Medical Associatons annual general meeting.
Euthanasia is when a doctor intentionally administers a fatal dose of drugs, usually barbituates, and assisted suicide is when the doctor provides the patient or loved one with the knowledge and means to end their lives.
Some 300 delegates heard discussions from an expert panel on end of life issues.
The meeting began Monday in the western city of Calgary Alberta.
The current CMA policy, unchanged from 2007, clearly states that Canadian doctors “should not participate in euthanasia or assisted suicide”.
Pushing the issue is the fact that the province of Quebec introduced contentious right-to-die legislation this year.
A Quebec parliamentary commission will begins hearings next month on the issue.
CMA President, Dr Anna Reid said Canadian physicians should be prepared to face a growing public discussion around the issue,
However, this week Canada’s health minister Rona Ambrose said the federal government isn’t planning to reopen the debate on euthanasia. “This is an issue that is very emotional for a lot of people — not just regular Canadians, but also physicians,” she told reporters. “Parliament voted in 2010 to not change its position on this issue. At this time, we don’t have any intention of changing our position.”
A 2011 CMA survey found that 20 per cent of MDs would be willing to participate in euthanasia if it were legalized in Canada, while twice as many — 42 per cent — would refuse to do so.
Nearly 40 per cent believed euthanasia should remain outlawed in Canada.
Dr Louis Hugo Francescutti is the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association. He says the time may have come for the powerful doctors’ group to revisit its stance on euthanasia, especially as he says, baby boomers watch their parents’ end-of-life struggles, and consider their own future.
Some surveys in Canada suggest that euthanasia is already being very discreetly practised. For example, morphine can be administered in ever-increasing amounts to control terminal pain. It also depresses breathing at high doses.
The issue is provoking strong reactions from doctors; some 20 motions on end-of-life issues are to be debated over the course of the CMA convention
For reasons beyond our control, and for an undetermined period of time, our comment section is now closed. However, our social networks remain open to your contributions.