medical assistance in dying

Content note: this episode contains swearing, and is a frank discussion about death, directed death, and medically assisted dying. We encourage our listeners to exercise care while listening to this episode.

Toronto-based disability advocate and real-life disabled icon Andrew Gurza returns to Hoorf for their second appearance in this heavy-hitting episode. Andrew and Elle share a frank discussion about MAID, Canada’s Medical Assistance In Dying program. Andrew shares his raw feelings about a friend who has applied for MAID, their deep concerns about how the program is being offered to disabled Canadians, and what the availability of the program signifies about the failing social supports for vulnerable Canadians.

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How do we prepare now to die well? Can we reimagine care of the dying in all of its messiness as a gift? 

Dr. Lydia Dugdale, a medical ethicist, internal medicine doctor, professor, and author of The Lost Art of Dying, talks with Amy Julia Becker about:

• Disability
• Death
• Medical assistance in dying
• Honoring all human life as the gift it is without idolizing life

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Guest Bio:

“Lydia Dugdale MD, MAR, is the Dorothy L. and Daniel H. Silberberg Associate Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at Columbia University. Prior to her 2019 move to Columbia, she was Associate Director of the Program for Biomedical Ethics and founding Co-Director of the Program for Medicine, Spirituality, and Religion at Yale School of Medicine. She is an internal medicine primary care doctor and medical ethicist. Her first book, Dying in the Twenty-First Century (MIT Press, 2015), provides the theoretical grounding for this current book. She lives with her husband and daughters in New York City.”
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Connect Online:

• Website: lydiadugdale.com

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On the Podcast:

• Book: The Lost Art of Dying: Reviving Forgotten Wisdom

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Interview transcript and more: amyjuliabecker.com/lydia-dugdale

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Season 6 of the Love Is Stronger Than Fear podcast connects to themes in my latest book, To Be Made Well, which you can order here! Learn more about my writing and speaking at amyjuliabecker.com.

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*A transcript of this episode will be available within one business day on my website, and a video with closed captions will be available on my YouTube Channel.

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Thanks for listening!

In this episode of Causes or Cures, Dr. Eeks chats with Dr. Madeline Li about Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying Law or MAID.  The Parliament of Canada passed MAID in 2016, allowing eligible Canadian adults to request medical assistance in dying. In 2021 the law was revised to allow for more chronic conditions to be included, and now they are in discussions to expand eligibility to those with a diagnosed mental disorder. 

Dr. Li is a psychiatrist specializing in cancer and palliative care who also has clinical expertise in applying MAID. She has done eligibility assessments for MAID and helped develop the MAID program for the University Health Network in Toronto, Canada.

In the podcast, she tells us more about what MAID is, how the original eligibility criteria evolved since 2016, and describes how the law is applied to people who request MAID. She discusses the reasons put forth for expanding MAID to include those with chronic conditions, including mental disorders, and how she personally feels about that. She talks about the key challenges and ethical concerns. Finally,  she offers her suggestions for improving MAID to overcome some of the challenges.

You can contact Dr. Eeks at bloomingwellness.com.
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In this week's conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss a difficult yet important topic - medically assisted suicide. The conversation was sparked by a podcast listener from Canada, where the Medical Assistance In Dying (MAID) law was passed in 2016 and is set to be expanded this year to include those who are suffering from mental illness. To say that this law has created a slippery slope is an understatement. And with the way things are trending in the U.S., we'll likely not be very far behind.

Episode Links

The idea of euthanasia or MAID is increasingly viewed by culture as allowing death with dignity, and coincides with the mantra that individual freedom is all that really matters. There are already 10 states in the U.S. that allow what is known as PAD - Physician-Assisted Death. What people seem to be missing is that quality of life should never supersede the sanctity of life. Dr. White has written about this topic in a blog called “The Startling Rise of Suicide” that you can read HERE.

The expansion of the MAID law in Canada to include allowing those with mental illness to take their own lives is particularly disturbing. Although, this is a trend that we've witnessed in the U.S. where more and more states are pushing to allow youth who are suffering from gender dysphoria to undergo procedures without parental input or approval. This was discussed in CCP21: On Gender. Dr. White also referenced a case in the Netherlands where a young girl who had been raped made the choice to die by euthanasia. You can read more about that HERE.

Finally, you heard Alexis again mention the upcoming Church & Culture LIVE Podcast on Thursday, February 23 from 12 - 1 p.m. You'll be able to access the podcast live through Meck's Online Campus platform. And if you can't make it that day, not to worry - you'll still be able to listen in on the conversation through all the usual channels the next day.

For those of you who are new to Church & Culture, we'd love to invite you to subscribe (for free of course) to the twice-weekly Church & Culture blog and check out the Daily Headline News - a collection of headlines from around the globe each weekday.

The controversy surrounding Canadian Military veterans and even paralympic athletes being offering medical assistance in dying (MAID) continues to grow. The Government says an RCMP investigation has been launched and Liberal plans to expand the MAID program to cover mental illness have been postponed.

Mark Meincke is a Canadian veteran. He’s open about his struggles with PTSD and even a suicide attempt in the last couple years. It seems “Ghoulish” to him what the Canadian Government seems to be doing. The MAID suggestions are coming from multiple caseworkers in Veteran’s Affairs from multiple offices across the Country. 

Why does Canada’s Government seem to want to kill Canada’s veterans rather than help them?

Guest: Mark E. Meincke
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In March, Canada will expand medically assisted dying to people with mental illness as a sole condition. This will make the country’s euthanasia law one of the most liberal in the world – just seven years after assisted dying first became legal.

A parliamentary committee has been hearing from experts since April about what needs to happen to make the right to die safe for all Canadians, and The Globe’s Erin Anderssen has been following the emotionally charged testimony.

If you are having thoughts of suicide, call Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868 or Crisis Service Canada at 1-833-456-4566, or visit crisisservicescanada.ca.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Cancer patients are facing lengthy wait times to see a doctor and get treated in British Columbia. These delays are not only stressful for the patient, they allow the disease to grow and become more complicated.

This is a massive change from a few decades ago when B.C. was seen as a leader in cancer care. Globe and Mail reporter Andrea Woo explains how these delays got so bad.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com.

On this episode of Appointed, Kim and Sarah Jama discuss the impact Bill C-7 (“An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying)”) could have on racialized people with disabilities. They talk about Sarah’s work with the Disability Justice Network of Ontario; the connections between racism, ableism, poverty and capitalism; racism in the medical field and the ways in which this intersects and impacts racialized people with disabilities; and the lack of services and supports available to people with disabilities. Kim and Sarah also talk about the meaning of “choice”, “autonomy” and “control” for people who are exponentially marginalized in Canada.

Sarah Jama is the co-founder of the Disability Justice Network of Ontario (DJNO), a speaker, a consultant and an activist advocating for disability justice.

Learn more about Sarah Jama here: https://www.sarahjama.com/about

Stay tuned for the next episode of Appointed!

Resources mentioned during the show and further reading:

Hill Times Article: https://www.hilltimes.com/2021/02/03/legislators-who-want-to-make-medically-assisted-dying-easier-for-persons-with-disabilities-dont-know-the-lived-realities-of-disability/281394

Disability Justice Network of Ontario: https://www.djno.ca/

Read Senator Pate’s Bill C-7 interventions and perspective on guaranteed livable income here (https://sencanada.ca/media/366455/senpate_glibi-perspective-document_08-15-2020_e.pdf)

https://www.djno.ca/post/djno-co-founder-speaks-against-bill-c7-changes-to-maid-on-canada-today

Jay Cameron, Justice Centre litigation manager, talks about Canada's proposed changes to its Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) laws, which do away with significant checks, balances and protections for the vulnerable. He says the new law is particularly insidious coming at a time when many of our senior citizens are suffering during the COVID lockdowns.

Justice Centre News Release, Nov 16, 2020: Justice Centre raises alarm over Bill C-7, links lockdowns to increased vulnerability of seniors

Canadian Parliament: (Bill C-7) An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying)

Justice Centre Report, (PDF): The Danger of Undue Influence: The Right to Life of the Elderly and Infirm, and Physician’s Conscience Rights

LifeSiteNews, Feb 28, 2020: Trudeau moves to make Canada most permissive ‘euthanasia regime’ in the world

Canadian Conference of Caltholic Bishops, Oct 20, 2020: Statement by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops to the re-tabling of Bill C-7

CanLII, Sep 11, 2019: Truchon c. Procureur général du Canada (French)

Jayde Jessome at Alexander Holburn (law firm) Sep 30, 2019: Truchon V. Procureur General-du-Canada: Superior Court of Quebec Finds Limiting Access to Medical Assistance in Dying (Maid) To End of Life Unconstitutional

Supreme Court of Canada:  Chaoulli v. Quebec (Attorney General)

Theme Music "Carpay Diem" by Dave Stevens

Dr. Sally Thorne is a Professor of Nursing at the University of British Columbia and a researcher who conducts qualitative studies into how patients and families experience and manage chronic and life limiting conditions. She also studies end of life care, including the complexities surrounding medical assistance in dying, and the complex conversations around the expanding array of options that are now available to Canadians facing that stage in their lives.

Find Dr. Thorne on Twitter.

She can be found at https://nursing.ubc.ca/our-people/sally-thorne.

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