14.06.11
Assisted dying should not be opposed - HPAD
Medical bodies should change their stance on assisted dying from opposition to ‘neutral’, Healthcare Professionals for Assisted Dying (HPAD) argue.
In an article published in the BMJ today, the HPAD states that legalisation is a decision for society, not doctors. A recent poll commissioned by Dignity in Dying found that 62% of 1,000 GPs support neutrality, and there is also significant support from the public.
The BMA will debate its position on assisted dying at its annual conference later this month.
Raymond Tallis, Emeritus Professor of Geriatric Medicine and HPAD’s chair said that opposition is inconsistent with the idea of patient centred care and the principle of ‘no decision about me without me’.
He added: “Given the overwhelming support for assisted dying in society as a whole and given also that there are healthcare professionals of good will, different faiths, and expertise in palliative care, with passionate views on both sides of the debate, we believe that the proper stance of healthcare professional bodies is one of neutrality.”
The BMA’s main opposition to assisted dying is that it is contrary to the ethos of medicine, he writes, “yet the monstrous cruelty of walking away from a dying patient in unbearable suffering seems more obviously contrary to the ethos of medicine”.
A BMA spokesperson said: “If assisted dying was legalised, effective safeguards could not be implemented without the involvement of doctors. It is therefore appropriate for doctors to voice their views on this issue.”
Iona Heath, president of the Royal College of General Practitioners, wrote in the BMJ last month, opposing the shift to neutrality: “As individuals, very few of us act always in the interests of others and, because of this very basic truth, the legalisation of assisted dying, despite the very best of intentions, may render the most vulnerable even more so.”
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