Category: Assisted suicide

Hearings on Quebec Bill 52: Federation of General Practitioners

Dr. Louis Godin, Dr. Marc-André Asselin

Legal Services Federation

Pierre Belzile

Tuesday 17 September 2013 – Vol. 43 N° 34

Note: The following translation is the product of a first run through “Google translate.”  In most cases it is sufficient to identify statements of interest, but more careful translation is required to properly understand the text.

Original Text

Caution: machine assisted translation
11 h 30 (version non révisée)
11 h 30 (version non révisée)
(Reprise à 11 h 30)
Le Président (M. Bergman) : À l’ordre, s’il vous plaît! Alors, je souhaite la bienvenue à la Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec. Dr Godin, bienvenue. Je vous demande de vous présenter, présenter les membres, votre collègue, et vous avez 15 minutes pour faire votre présentation, suivie d’un échange avec les membres de la commission. The Chairman (Mr. Bergman): Order, please! So I welcome the Federation of General Practitioners of Quebec. Dr. Godin, welcome. I ask you to introduce yourself, introduce the members, your colleague, and you have 15 minutes to make your presentation, followed by a discussion with the members of the commission.
M. Godin (Louis) : D’accord. Mr. Godin (Louis): Okay.
Le Président (M. Bergman) : Alors, ce micro, c’est à vous. The Chairman (Mr. Bergman): So, this microphone is yours.
M. Godin (Louis) : Merci, M. le Président. D’abord, je vous remercie de nous donner l’opportunité de s’adresser à vous. Je voudrais saluer Mme la ministre ainsi que les représentants de la première et deuxième opposition. Je suis le Dr Louis Godin, président de la Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec. Je suis accompagné, à ma droite, du Dr Marc-André Asselin, premier vice-président de la fédération et président de l’Association des médecins omnipraticiens de Montréal, ainsi que de Me Pierre Belzile, qui est le chef des services juridiques à la fédération. Mr. Godin (Louis): Thank you, Mr. President. First, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address you. I welcome the Foreign Minister and the representatives of the first and second opposition. I’m Dr. Louis Godin, president of the Federation of General Practitioners of Quebec. With me, on my right, Dr. Marc-André Asselin, Senior Vice President of the Federation and President of the Association of general practitioners in Montreal, as well as Pierre Belzile, who is the Head of Legal Services federation.
Je dois vous dire d’entrée de jeu que ce projet de loi là revêt un caractère particulier et essentiel pour la fédération et les médecins de famille qu’elle représente parce que, comme vous le savez sans doute, les médecins de famille sont probablement les médecins au Québec qui sont les plus interpellés par les soins en fin de vie, que ce soient les soins palliatifs ou tout autre service qui peut être donné à nos patients. Donc, les médecins de famille sont vraiment au coeur de ce projet de loi là et de cette situation-là. I must say from the outset that this bill there is special and essential for the federation and the family physicians it is because, as you know, family physicians are likely physicians in Quebec who are most challenged by the end of life care, whether palliative care or other services that can be given to our patients. So, family physicians are really the heart of this bill there and that situation.

Full Translation

Hearings on Quebec Bill 52: College of Physicians

Dr. Charles Bernard, Dr. Yves Robert, Dr. Michelle Marchand

Tuesday 17 September 2013 – Vol. 43 N° 34

Note: The following translation is the product of a first run through “Google translate.”  In most cases it is sufficient to identify statements of interest, but more careful translation is required to properly understand the text.

Original Text

Caution: machine assisted translation
M. Bernard (Charles) : Merci, M. le Président. Alors, M. le Président, Mme la ministre, Mmes, MM. les parlementaires, alors le Collège des médecins du Québec vous remercie de lui permettre de vous présenter ses réflexions sur le projet de loi n° 52 concernant les soins de fin de vie, et j’ajouterais que nous sommes honorés d’être les premiers à auditionner devant cette commission en cette journée de rentrée parlementaire, alors on vous en remercie. Thank you, Mr. President. So, Mr. President, Madam Minister, Mrs, Mr. parliamentarians, while the College of Physicians of Quebec thank you for allowing him to present his thoughts on Bill No. 52 on the end-of-life, and I would add that we are honored to be the first to audition before the Committee on this day parliamentary session, so we thank you.
Alors, ce projet de loi constitue, à nos yeux, un jalon très important dans la réflexion sur les soins de vie, et, à notre avis, il devrait être adopté. Amorcée en mai 2006 à l’occasion de notre assemblée générale annuelle, cette réflexion s’est transformée en un vaste débat public, à l’issu duquel la Commission spéciale sur la question de mourir dans la dignité a remis sont rapport en mars 2012. D’entrée de jeu, vous nous permettrez de souligner le travail exceptionnel effectué sur ce sujet extrêmement complexe et sensible par tous les parlementaires, et en particulier le vôtre, Mme la ministre, vous avez fait preuve d’un respect, d’une qualité d’écoute, d’une rigueur et d’une compréhension des enjeux d’une rare qualité, et nous vous en remercions sincèrement, cela mérite d’être souligné. So this bill is, in our view, a very important milestone in thinking about life care, and, in our opinion, should be adopted. Began in May 2006 at our annual general meeting, the discussion turned into a broad public debate, the end of which the Special Committee on Dying with Dignity are handed over in March 2012. From the outset, please allow us to recognize the outstanding work done on this topic extremely complex and sensitive by all parliamentarians, particularly yours, Madam Minister, you have demonstrated compliance, quality listening, rigor and an understanding of the challenges of a rare quality, and we sincerely thank you, it deserves to be highlighted.

Full Translation

Activist complains that Catholic hospitals won’t facilitate assisted suicide

In an opinion piece published in the Seattle Times, Tom Preston,  a retired physician who was one of the leaders of the successful assisted suicide lobby in Washington State, complains that Catholic hospitals in the state will not facilitate assisted suicide. “Throughout Washington,” he claims, “doctors are being silenced and forced to adhere to religious rules that prevent any participation in death with dignity,” and that “many Washingtonians are denied access to legal and humane end-of-life medical care.”

Writers with a different view of assisted suicide would respond that Catholic hospitals provide “humane end-of life medical care” as well as “death with dignity,” though not assisted suicide.  In any case, the position taken by Preston demonstrates that the legalization of morally contentious procedures like euthanasia and assisted suicide tends to generate political and social pressures inimical to freedom of conscience among health care workers and institutions.

Letter: If society wants to legalize euthanasia, physicians should not be the ones to carry it out  

The Gazette

J. Donald Boudreau, MD

Physicians who refuse to be co-opted into assisting patients  accelerate their death are not, as Dr. Dave Lambert seems to imply,  medical dinosaurs. And by rejecting his option, we are most certainly  not trying to save or prolong lives “at all costs,” that is, we are  not vitalists. One can simultaneously reject both vitalism and euthanasia. . . [Full text]

 

Canadian Medical Association affirms physician freedom of conscience

During the 146th Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Medical Association in Calgary, Alberta, discussion of motions concerning euthanasia and assisted suicide demonstrated how contentious the issues are for physicians.  The delegates could not even agree upon what terminology should be used for the procedures, referring the question to the CMA board of directors.  [Vancouver Sun; CMAJ] However, delegates “easily” passed a motion put forward by one of the delegates to support physician freedom of conscience:

The Canadian Medical Association supports the right of any physician to exercise conscientious objection when faced with a request for medical aid in dying. (DM 5-22)