What is the alternative to offering dementia patients access to Medical Assistance in Dying? Many patients may seek a solitary death outside the medical system using drugs acquired on the Internet, or in desperation they may choose more violent means. Both of these routes are chancy propositions that often result in failure or massive complications – as I know from having written about this subject as a journalist. Which would be the lesser harm: a solitary death in the shadows or controlled access to medically assisted death?
Bio:
Sandra Martin, a contributing writer for the Globe and Mail, is the author most recently of A Good Death: Making the Most of Our Final Choices.