By Peter Oliver, Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan (CHAS)
In a recent discussion with Dr Leonie Herx who will be presenting at the CHAS convention Oct. 22, 2024, the issue of confusion about euthanasia — known as medical assistance in dying (MAiD) — was raised.
Dr. Herx knows a fair bit about medically-provided euthanasia, its relationship to palliative care, and the perception of these realities in the public. Her LinkedIn bio tells us she is the “co-founder of the new Royal College sub-specialty in palliative care medicine and has contributed to the development of both federal and provincial policies and legislation related to palliative care. …. She has also been an expert witness to various parliamentary committees regarding the impact of legalization of MAiD in Canada.”
During our conversation I also discovered that she has worked extensively with the bishops in Kingston, ON, and Calgary, AB, to inform parishioners about medically-provided euthanasia.
She suggests that people often do not recognize the difference between medically-provided death and palliative care, and sometimes fear palliation has the same intention as MAiD.
I raise the observation Dr. Herx made because the issue of confusion has surfaced repeatedly as I probe the unfolding reality of medially-provided euthanasia or “MAiD” in Canada.
Confusion is also registered by other professionals in the area of palliative care who recognize that people find it difficult to distinguish between euthanasia and the morally-permissible refusal of treatments that are unduly burdensome, cause excessive pain, or offer no reasonable hope of benefit.
Additionally, confusion is present in the assumptions about public support for euthanasia – for instance, that this is a partisan issue. However, in a recent Cardus panel discussion on euthanasia and mental health, journalist Megan Gillmore noted that the private members Bill C-314 put forward by Ed Fast, which would have halted the government’s move toward expanding medically-provided euthanasia for people with mental illness, “was defeated by the narrowest of margins and the Bill was supported by MPs from every party.”
The sense of confusion is deepend, exacerbated, and taken advantage of by the proponents of euthanasia who would prefer that we think of medically-provided death as a compassionate response to terminally ill people. The reality is that euthanasia is often provided to individuals who have many years of life to live and the underlying conviction of many who support euthanasia is really rooted in the conviction that any person at any time has the right to have their life ended by a medical professional. Their only criterion is that a person finds living intolerable.
One of the things the Church could do is to focus on education about euthanasia and palliative care with the specific goal of addressing the confusion. Clear distinctions need to be made between palliative care and MAiD. Strenuous efforts need to go into articulating the reality as it is unfolding in Canada so that people understand that euthanasia is not necessarily provided to terminally ill people. We also need help in finding ways to communicate with people in our communities so that we build bridges and resist the temptation to increase the polarization around this issue.
In Catholic spirituality confusion is effectively dispelled by the work of the Holy Spirit. So I’ll end by saying that we also need to pray for the assistance of the Holy Spirit who can quiet our minds and give us the fortitude to address this issue.
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The Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan (CHAS) was formed in 1943 to be a voice for Catholic hospitals and long-term care facilities, and to protect and promote Catholic health care in Saskatchewan. Peter Oliver serves as Executive Director of the provincial organization.