Physicians and Euthanasia: What about Psychiatric Illness, Dementia and Weltschmerz?

Guest Post by Eva Bolt

In the Netherlands, requests for euthanasia are not uncommon. A physician who grants a request for euthanasia in the Netherlands is not prosecuted if the criteria for due care (described in the Euthanasia Act) are met. An example of one of these criteria is the presence of unbearable suffering without prospect of improvement. Almost all physicians in the Netherlands can conceive of situations in which they would perform euthanasia. However, each request for euthanasia calls for careful deliberation. When confronted with a request, a physician needs to judge the situation from two perspectives. The first is the legal perspective; would this case meet the criteria for due care? To judge this, a physician can fall back on the description of the Euthanasia Act and receives help from a consulting physician. The second perspective is personal; how does the physician feel about performing euthanasia in this situation? Is it in line with his personal values?

Our study shows that cause of the patient’s suffering is one of the aspects that influence the physician’s decision on euthanasia. This is interesting, because the Dutch euthanasia act does not make a distinction between different diseases. In case of suffering with a clear physical cause like cancer, most physicians can conceive of performing euthanasia. However, there are also people who request for euthanasia without suffering from a severe physical cause. In these cases, there are not many physicians who would consider complying with this request. As a consequence, people suffering from a psychiatric disease and early stage dementia with a euthanasia wish will rarely find a physician who would grant their euthanasia request. The same is true for people who are tired of living but who do not suffer from a severe physical disease. Also, most physicians will not consider following advanced euthanasia directives asking for euthanasia in case of advanced dementia.

Concluding, while most Dutch physicians can conceive of granting requests for euthanasia from patients suffering from cancer or other severe physical diseases, this is not the case in patients suffering from psychiatric disease, dementia or being tired of living. This distinction is partly related to the criteria for due care. For instance, some physicians describe that it is impossible to determine the presence of unbearable suffering in a patient with advanced dementia. Other explanations for the distinction are not related to the criteria for due care. For instance, it is understandable that physicians do not agree with performing euthanasia in a patient with advanced dementia who does not fully understand what is happening, even if the patient has a clear advanced euthanasia directive.

Each physician needs to form his or her own standpoint on euthanasia, based on legal boundaries and personal values. We would advise people with a future wish for euthanasia to discuss this wish with their physician in time, and we would advise physicians to be clear about their standpoint on the matter. This can help to prevent disagreement and disappointment.

Read the full paper here.

 

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