Conditional medically controlled death becomes available to Victorians as of today. You have good law makers over there.
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But, But⌠mah bible!
You can cuddle your bible on the way out if one wants or seek assistance in a humane way. Choice. Itâs a good thing.
Agreed.
As ever, I doubt youâll find anyone on the pro-euthanasia side of the argument saying that people shouldnât have a choice other than assisted dying.
Having watched a close relative take a good 5 years to die in a terrible physical and mental state, I think itâs a good thing that we now allow humans to pass with the same dignity we afford dogs.
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Big issue is not the person dying I dont think, its the one who is doing the assisting.
If its OK by the doctor then I think its OK by me. I would like to see some sort of legal doco okayed by a lawyer as well. (including a review of the will).
I havenât looked at the legislation but from what Iâve read and heard it is pretty comprehensive with many safeguards for the medical professionals and patients. Some have said it is too comprehensive but I personally donât think that is a bad thing.
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Unless the patient is unable, Iâm pretty sure that the dose is self-administered (I may be wrong, but last I read that was the case).
Also, two ways to look at that. What is more unfair-seeing someone suffer, or being able to end the suffering of someone? Given the current rules around it, you could argue that they get to be someone who enables their final wish. To me, that sounds very empowering rather than sobering.
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And Iâd be fairly certain that doctors wouldnât be compelled to provide the service, if they held incompatible views.
That is the case. And it may turn out to be a problem for people living in regional areas where only one doctor is available. My understanding is you need at least two to agree.
To me it seems like such a sane thing to do that itâs hard to comprehend why there is so much hand-wringing around the debate. Bravo Victoria.
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Iâve watched multiple loved ones be assisted to their end through ending of oxygen therapy, food and water. I know of many who have received a strong dose of morphein from a doctor.
We already do this, but we turn a blind eye and donât look too closely as itâs not legal. Iâm 100% supportive of giving people a dignified end to their life. Just having the option is hugely important to people in these predicaments.
Terry Pratchett was a huge advocate for assisted dying. He had a fatal dose of medication hidden in his home for when he decided it was time. He never used that dose, but the power it gave him over his disease was huge.
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Exactly this! My sentiments to a tee.
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Yep. 15 years ago I watched my grandmother die of mesothelioma. Towards the end the doctors would come in and turn her oxygen down every so often. I remember my aunty asking if thatâs what they were doing and they ignored her and left each time.
Itâs what my grandmother wanted and itâs what the family wanted. Obviously it wasnât something you could request but it had been spoken about.
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The peace of mind that this service is legal and available is massive for dying patients. They now have some semblance of control.
Itâs not available to everyone, but itâs a start.
The legal safeguards are comprehensive, so itâs not as if ghoulish family members can now pressure sick people to end their life just so wills can be accessed.
If a doctor has a moral objection to it, they arenât compelled to ok the process.
The patient needs to be of sound mind and be able to make their own decisions.
This is a major progression in patient care and Iâm fully supportive of it.
Go the Vics and may the rest of Aus follow!
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Going back two decades now, my grandfather finally succumbed to complications from diabetes exacerbated by multiple heart attacks.
He was in hospital for three days before it became very apparent that he wasnât going to recover. He was a tough old digger, and expressed in no uncertain terms that he was ready to go. His exact words were âWhat are you all doing here watching me die, donât you have jobs to go to? If one of you wants to be useful you can drive a man home so he can get his shotgunââŚ
He had a word to the doctor on his next round, and it was explained to him that what time was left to him wasnât going to be pleasant, but that they would continue to increase his morphine dose âaccording to his wishes and pain thresholdâ. He then told us it would be a good time to do our goodbyes.
We did, and about half an hour later the nurse came in and asked how his pain was. He told her âunbearableâ, and gave her a wink.
We all knew he wasnât feeling a lot of pain at that moment, but he was going to, and he was motionless in a hospital bed with tubes running in and out of every hole in his body, unable to eat or drink, in a reasonably advanced state of renal failure.
The nurse cranked up the morphine. A lot. It took probably an hour all up, he drifted out of consciousness about half an hour in, and just whispered âsee you in churchâ, which was his ironic catch phrase that heâd used all his life.
He died on his own terms, at a time of his choosing, and in a way that was so similar to how heâd lived his life, even down to the joking way in which heâd asked for it.
Iâll be forever grateful to that doctor and nurse. They allowed a bloke who valued his dignity and pride a great deal throughout his life to keep it in his death.
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According to the ABCâs vote compass, 87% of people agreed that Euthanasia should be legal. 6% were unsure, 7% were against it.
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What a shame that they had to break the law to do the right thing. Itâs wrong and those professionals shouldnât have to risk their livelihoods and potentially their freedom by doing what your grandfather wanted.
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They were an important demonstration at that stage of my life that acting illegally does not always equal acting badly.
Might seem like excessive mayo, but I reckon theyâre heroes.
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Medicos need to know that the law supports them so they donât wear the moral responsibility of this âdifficultâ task on their own.
Canadian show on SBS called Mary Kills People is a dramatisation of euthanasia, which is against the law there.