From Nationalpost · · 1m 10s
Canadian Doctors Push Pause on Medical Assisted Dying
Two Toronto psychiatrists urge Canada to pause medical assisted dying after patients faced family conflicts and poverty-related distress.
In brief
Two Toronto psychiatrists urge Canada to pause medical assisted dying after patients faced family conflicts and poverty-related distress. Canadian doctors argue that medical assisted dying has gone too far too fast, citing cases where patients delayed procedures after counseling and concerns about poverty and…
Doctors' Concerns
Two Toronto psychiatrists wrote an op-ed for the New York Times arguing Canada's medical assisted dying law has gone too far too fast.
Family Conflict Case
A woman in her 70s, the family matriarch who made Sunday dinners, sought assisted dying after losing cooking ability but chose to delay it through counseling.
Holocaust Survivor Case
An 80-year-old Holocaust survivor requested assisted dying to reclaim freedom from Hitler but delayed it after family concerns about giving up too soon.
Poverty and Loneliness
Doctors cite a 2024 report showing people seeking assisted dying due to poverty or loneliness, raising concerns about feeling they have no other options.
Counseling Success
Both patients chose to delay procedures after counseling, with one eventually proceeding when he lost capacity to consent to assisted dying.
The key point
Canadian doctors argue that medical assisted dying has gone too far too fast, citing cases where patients delayed procedures after counseling and concerns about poverty and loneliness.
