Speaking out: The real dignity of dying
This past fall, my mother received a call from the care home in Yorkton, Sask., where her eldest sister was a resident. My mother was informed that her sister had taken a turn in health and there likely wasn’t much time left.
Fight over forced referral policy on assisted suicide not over yet
National palliative care strategy given green light
Sisters find joy in mom’s final journey
Care for the dying does not mean relentlessly resisting death, Pope says
VATICAN CITY – People who are dying must be accompanied with the love of family members and the care of medical professionals, but there is no requirement that every means available must be used to prolong their lives, Pope Francis said.
Palliative care offers a final healing
Assisted suicide raises difficult questions
Ontario falls short of hospice bed target
Assisted suicide on the rise in Canada, report shows
Comment: Rediscovering the art of dying
In the 16 months between the Supreme Court decision and the passage of federal legislation regulating medically assisted death, I was intensely involved in discussions and debates within the medical profession, among Catholic health care providers, ethicists and clergy, and with national and provincial government bodies. I was trying to mitigate the harms of the decision, particularly in the protection of the vulnerable, and in defending the right of conscientious objection for physicians and faith-based organizations.
The agency responsible for expanding Ontario’s network of hospice care wants hospice patients to have the option of assisted suicide, even if most hospices and the majority of doctors oppose it.
Religious leaders call for national palliative care strategy
Four Canadian religious leaders, including the head of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, are urging the federal government to develop a “well-funded, national initiative to improve palliative care access and quality.”
The pledge was buried deep within the federal budget and delivered almost as an afterthought. Still, it is encouraging to see the Liberals keeping a 2015 election promise on palliative care.