Death With Dignity - The Case for Legalizing Physician-Assisted Dying and Euthanasia by Orfali Robert

Author:Orfali, Robert [Orfali, Robert]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Mill City Press
Published: 2011-04-15T07:00:00+00:00

Netherlands: “Euthanasia Talk”

In the Netherlands, a patient’s request for euthanasia starts as a conversation with the family huisart. The Dutch call it “euthanasia talk” and consider it to be a palliative function. The conversation serves as a venue for openly discussing death, the meaning of life, and the needs of the dying.

Typically, the huisart uses the conversation to respond to the needs and fears of the patient. Following that, the huisart organizes the social and palliative resources that the patient will need for end-of-life care. Eventually, the living room is transformed into a hospital room. The conversation continues: it now evolves into an ongoing discourse on dying. It brings together patient, family, nurses, and doctors. Together, they examine all the options and go over the palliative choices.

The huisarts devote a lot of time to these conversations. They make house calls at night, during weekends, and at other times. They take life and death very seriously. At the end, the conversation rarely culminates in a euthanasia death. In 2005, fewer than 1 in 10 who initiated requests died as a result of euthanasia or assisted suicide.

In some cases, the palliative treatment fails and the conversation then moves to the next step. The patient must concretely request euthanasia in a written declaration. Dutch law requires that: 1) the patient make a voluntary, informed, and well-considered request; 2) the patient must be facing unbearable and hopeless suffering, either currently or in the immediate future, with no outlook for improvement; 3) the physician must agree with the patient that no reasonable alternative treatment is available (the patient has the right to refuse treatment); 4) the physician must consult with an independent physician not involved in the case; and 5) the action must be performed with due care and reported to the authorities.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.