Editorial
The Canadian Medical Association (CMA), which represents physicians in every province and territory, has launched a undertaking regarding the highly controversial issue of physician-assisted death.
Using a town-hall format over the next three months, the end-of-life (EOL) public input gathering initiative will see stakeholders given a chance to weigh in on whether they believe individuals should have the legal right to end their lives at the time of their choosing.
As quite literally a matter of life and death, the outcome of the ongoing EOL debate could end up impacting Canadians for years and decades to come. As such it is of interest to all communities, including those here in West Central Alberta.
As one of the most contentious health-care issues facing Canada in 2014, the end-of-life discussion has in fact been going on for many years, with passions always running very high on both sides.
Now the CMA has opened another chapter in the debate.
ìInterest in EOL care has ebbed and flowed in recent years, but two recent factors ó significant court cases and Canada's rapidly changing demographic profile ó have turned it into a top-of-mind issue for physicians and patients,î said CMA president Louis Hugo Francescutti.
ìI think we're doing Canadians a favour ó we're encouraging a discussion that we absolutely need to have. Last summer I told a reporter that the CMA is not going to lead the way in proposing policy because policy on end-of-life care is something all Canadians have to decide.
ìHowever, what we can do is encourage the discussion ó get it going, if you will ó and that's exactly what these new town hall forums will do.î
The CMA has set a number of broad questions it hopes will help guide the EOL discussions, including:
ï What are the respective roles of physicians and patients when it comes to having end-of-life discussions?
ï What is ìgoodî palliative care?
ï If quality palliative care is available, do we still need to discuss euthanasia and assisted suicide?
Although none of the five planned town hall forums will take place in Alberta ñ they are happening in Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Ontario and Saskatchewan ñ residents here will have a chance to take part online.
Helping someone take his or her own life is currently unlawful under the Criminal Code of Canada. And while it remains to be seen whether that will remain the case, this new CMA initiative is a worthwhile and important initiative in the public interest.
