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E-book Euthanasia : Searching for the Full Story Experiences and Insights of Belgian Doctors and Nurses

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Penilaian

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For more than 20 years I have practiced nursing, first in oncology services, then in palliative care. As a teacher and psychotherapist for the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to continue working with nursing students in palliative care and psychi-atric services, as well as to supervise nursing teams. An ethicist by training, I belong to an ethics committee in a neuropsychiatric hospital. Wearing these different hats gives me the great privilege of encountering patients at the end of life or who suffer from mental illnesses as well as nurses and students who face difficult situations, and to review in the ethics committee clinical situations involving great suffering.The question of euthanasia comes up very regularly and occasions numerous discussions that are both emotional and engaging. Since 2002, Belgian law has permitted euthanasia to be decriminalized under cer-tain conditions. Notably, this law was intended to combat clandestine euthanasia, but one is led to conclude that this has absolutely not been the result. According to a thorough study in The British Medical Journal1 [1], it can be reasonably estimated that half of the euthanasia procedures are still being carried out without being reported. This is not surprising for those who know that someone’s death is always accompanied by strong emotions and that decisions are often made on the spur of the moment.Five years ago, a doctor went so far as to say, in the Senate, that for a long time he had not declared any euthanasia cases and that he did not call in a second col-league to validate the request for euthanasia, as the law nonetheless stipulates.2The topic has not ceased to be fed by the media who, by playing on emotions, impose on us the idea that in order to die with dignity, one has to be euthanized.This discussion is taking place in a country marked, as are other countries in Europe, by an increase in serious incurable diseases of much longer duration than in the past. Every year in Belgium, more than 40,000 new cases of cancer are diag-nosed, with the prognosis of real healing (remission for more than 5 years) of around 60%; however, in spite of advances in medicine, more than 15,000 Belgians die of cancer every year. To this must be added the upsurge of other diseases labeled as multifactorial (Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular diseases, cerebral vascular strokes, neuromuscular diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and schizo-phrenia)—all of them burdensome pathologies that cause a great deal of physical and mental suffering. It was thus necessary to initiate discussion about the end of life. But it had to be done sincerely, that is, by involving all who play a part in healthcare and without any preconceived ideas. But that is not what happened. In 2002, Belgium decrimi-nalized euthanasia and at the same time promoted palliative care,3 as though to signify that they were one and the same reality. Yet, if there is a message to put across first and foremost, it is that it is necessary to differentiate clearly between euthanasia, which is the planned process of dying, from palliative care. The latter aims, as is well known, at developing the specific management of physical, psycho-logical, familial, and spiritual symptoms.However, the definition, in Europe as in Canada, is clear and unambiguous: “Palliative care neither hastens nor postpones death.” It follows that every form of extraordinary measure that postpones death and every act of euthanasia that hastens death is foreign to the philosophy of palliative care.

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Ketersediaan

Informasi Detail

Judul Seri

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No. Panggil

618.976 VER e

Penerbit

Switzerland : Springer Nature., 2021

Deskripsi Fisik

122 hlm

Bahasa

English

ISBN/ISSN

9783030567958

Klasifikasi

618.976

Tipe Isi

text

Tipe Media

computer

Tipe Pembawa

online resource

Edisi

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Subjek

Specific Diseases of Geriatrics

Info Detail Spesifik

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Pernyataan Tanggungjawab

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Versi lain/terkait

Lampiran Berkas

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