Suicide tourism

It was reported last week that 1 Briton a fortnight goes to Switzerland for assisted suicide. Euthanasia and assisted suicide is illegal in the UK, but perhaps this needs to be changed, as Brits account for a fifth of foreigners going the Swiss assisted-suicide or “right-to-die” clinics.

The non-profit organisation Dignitas is the only Swiss clinic to open its doors to foreigners. There are strict criteria of prerequisites that need to be met in order to access the service. First, the patient must be of sound judgement and possess a minimum level of physical ability to enable self-administration of the drug. Secondly, they must have a terminal illness (a disease that will lead to death), an unendurable disability or unbearable and uncontrollable pain. For an accompanied suicide, the patient must submit a formal request comprising a personal signed letter to Dignitas, a biographical CV describing personal background and family circumstances for the doctors to assess, and medical reports.

The course of accompanied suicide is taking an anti-emtic (drug against nausea and vomiting) followed by a fatal dose of pentobarbital, normally administered dissolved in water. Within a few minutes the patient falls asleep, slipping into a deep coma and death occurs via paralysis of the respiratory centre leading to the patient being unable to breathe.

The issue of assisted dying was recently debated in the House of Lords. Lord Falconer presented an Assisted Dying Bill offering assisted suicide to terminally ill patients deemed mentally capable and within 6 months of death. A YouGov survey found 73% of adults in England and Wales support the proposals in the Bill. However, it has only received its second reading in the House of Lords and there is a long process ahead (you can track the progress of the bill at http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2014-15/assisteddying.html).

It is argued that legalisation of assisted dying would not mean more deaths, but less suffering. However, this Bill is still limited. Only 43% of the British public agree that a doctor should be allowed to end the life of someone who is not in much pain or danger of dying, but is completely dependent on relatives, like Daniel James.  At 23, he became the youngest to go to Dignitas after a rugby accident that left him suffering with tetragplegia (paralysis from the chest down). Therefore, disability should be considered when discussing the Assisted Dying Bill. It is also important to deliberate assisted dying for those in the position who do not meet the prerequisite of being able to self-administer the drug. Will there be point in a future where once you are over the age of 18 you must put in writing what should happen to you in the unlikely event?

However, the introduction of disability and inability to self-administer the drug causes more safeguarding concerns. However, if Britain does not address these issues surrounding assisted suicide, this forces an already increasing number of people to travel to Switzerland. 

Below is documentary called Choosing To Die by Terry Pratchett, which features a 71-year-old suffering with motor neurone disease going to Dignitas.