The Changing Landscape: An Implication in nursing due to legalization of
Physician-assisted death
Canada’s first hospice palliative care program was developed in the 1970s to respond to the needs of the dying, relieve their suffering and improve their quality of life (Ferris, 2002). Despite the effort of palliative care to increase the quality-of-life in the end stages, medical aid in dying or physician assisted death [PAD] was the priority for many terminally ill patients. PAD is a unique practice, wherein “a physician knowingly and intentionally provides a person with knowledge or means or both required to end their own lives, including counseling about lethal doses of drugs, prescribing such a lethal doses or supplying the drugs” (CMA, …show more content…
The Criminal Code of Canada states, “no person can consent to have death inflicted upon him” (Kirkey, 2013), which prohibited helping or influencing anyone to end his/her life under any circumstances. In 1992, Sue Rodriguez, a woman with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, appealed to dismiss the validity of section 241(b), which prohibited any form of euthanasia, which means a doctor intentionally ends a person’s life through the administration of specific drugs, at the person’s voluntary and competent request (CHPCA, 2012). She argued, “Her right to life, liberty and security of the person included the right to control the method, timing and circumstances of death”, but was denied by section 241 (Butler et al, …show more content…
A 1996 survey of Canadian Physicians indicated that 24% would be willing to practice voluntary euthanasia and 23% would practice assisted suicide if these practices were legalized (CHPCA, 2006). The 2014 survey of the Canadian Medical Association [CMA], where almost 5,000 CMA members were involved, shows that 44.8% were in favor of legalizing physician-assisted death, 36.3% felt euthanasia should be legalized and 26.7% would be likely or very likely to participate if physician assisted death was legalized. Furthermore, the CMA conducted a meeting regarding palliative care and euthanasia, the results on the voting showed 70% felt CMA should revise its existing policy on euthanasia and physician-assisted death, which opposes physician involvement in medical aid in dying; in another vote, 78% felt universal access to palliative care services would not eliminate the need for euthanasia (Rich, 2014). Finally, the recent survey done by the Canadian Nurses Association [CNA], where 700 registered nurses participated, showed more than half of the respondents are in favor of legislation allowing medically assisted dying; three-quarters of the respondents also said they talk with the patients and families about end-of-life choices and advanced care planning (CNA,
Physician-assisted death
Canada’s first hospice palliative care program was developed in the 1970s to respond to the needs of the dying, relieve their suffering and improve their quality of life (Ferris, 2002). Despite the effort of palliative care to increase the quality-of-life in the end stages, medical aid in dying or physician assisted death [PAD] was the priority for many terminally ill patients. PAD is a unique practice, wherein “a physician knowingly and intentionally provides a person with knowledge or means or both required to end their own lives, including counseling about lethal doses of drugs, prescribing such a lethal doses or supplying the drugs” (CMA, …show more content…
The Criminal Code of Canada states, “no person can consent to have death inflicted upon him” (Kirkey, 2013), which prohibited helping or influencing anyone to end his/her life under any circumstances. In 1992, Sue Rodriguez, a woman with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, appealed to dismiss the validity of section 241(b), which prohibited any form of euthanasia, which means a doctor intentionally ends a person’s life through the administration of specific drugs, at the person’s voluntary and competent request (CHPCA, 2012). She argued, “Her right to life, liberty and security of the person included the right to control the method, timing and circumstances of death”, but was denied by section 241 (Butler et al, …show more content…
A 1996 survey of Canadian Physicians indicated that 24% would be willing to practice voluntary euthanasia and 23% would practice assisted suicide if these practices were legalized (CHPCA, 2006). The 2014 survey of the Canadian Medical Association [CMA], where almost 5,000 CMA members were involved, shows that 44.8% were in favor of legalizing physician-assisted death, 36.3% felt euthanasia should be legalized and 26.7% would be likely or very likely to participate if physician assisted death was legalized. Furthermore, the CMA conducted a meeting regarding palliative care and euthanasia, the results on the voting showed 70% felt CMA should revise its existing policy on euthanasia and physician-assisted death, which opposes physician involvement in medical aid in dying; in another vote, 78% felt universal access to palliative care services would not eliminate the need for euthanasia (Rich, 2014). Finally, the recent survey done by the Canadian Nurses Association [CNA], where 700 registered nurses participated, showed more than half of the respondents are in favor of legislation allowing medically assisted dying; three-quarters of the respondents also said they talk with the patients and families about end-of-life choices and advanced care planning (CNA,