Thousands of medics tell PM to ditch assisted suicide bill

Thousands of doctors and nurses have signed an open letter to the Prime Minister urging him to ditch the highly controversial assisted dying bill and say they will refuse to take part if the law is changed.

The letter, organised by the campaign group Our Duty of Care (Odoc), goes on to tell Sir Keir that the NHS is broken and the Government’s focus should be better funding for palliative care and stopping the post-code lottery that sees one in four people who would benefit from care unable to access it.

“We write with great concern regarding the introduction of a Bill to legalise doctor-assisted suicide. The NHS is broken, with health and social care in disarray. Palliative care is woefully underfunded and many lack access to specialist provision,” it says.

“The thought of assisted suicide being introduced and managed safely at such a time is remarkably out of touch with the gravity of the current mental health crisis and pressures on staff…

“Any change would threaten society’s ability to safeguard vulnerable patients from abuse; it would undermine the trust the public places in physicians; and it would send a clear message to our frail, elderly and disabled patients about the value that society places on them as people.”

The letter, is signed by more than 3,400 doctors and nurses, from every specialism, including 49 professors of medicine, nearly 100 palliative care doctors and nearly 700 GPs, goes on to robustly challenge key arguments often put forward by those who support assisted suicide and euthanasia that any would contain robust legal safeguards, that the terminally ill, vulnerable and disabled people are best placed to choose when to end their life with state assistance and any change to the medical profession would be minimal.

“It is impossible for any Government to draft assisted suicide laws which include protection from coercion and future expansion. Canada has demonstrated that safeguards can be eroded in a matter of just five years; it has been roundly criticised for introducing euthanasia for those who are disabled and plans for the mentally ill have been paused because of international concern.

“The shift from preserving life to taking life is enormous and should not be minimised. The prohibition of killing is present in all societies due to the immeasurable worth and inherent dignity of every human life. The prohibition of killing is the safeguard. The current law is the protection for the vulnerable.”

It continues: “Far from one person’s decision affecting no one else, it affects us all. Some patients may never consider assisted suicide unless it was suggested to them. Nearly half those who choose assisted suicide in Oregon cite ‘feeling a burden’.”

The letter concludes by saying, “As healthcare professionals, we have a legal duty of care for the safety and wellbeing of our patients. We, the undersigned, will never take our patients’ lives – even at their request. But for the sake of us all, and for future generations, we ask do not rush into hasty legislation but instead fund excellent palliative care.”

Dr Gillian Wright, who co-authored the letter commented: “Our letter to the Prime Minister highlights our grave concerns around changing the law as assisted suicide affects us all, our patients, their families and medical staff. Healthcare professionals from across all medical specialties, General Practice, Palliative, Hospital, Community and Hospice echo that we will not help patients to take their own lives, because of the pressure that disabled and dying people so often feel under, whether real or perceived. And as we see in places like Ontario Canada, the right to die can become a duty to die, with the poorest people in society more likely to be euthanised than their richer neighbours. There is nothing progressive about that.

“We underline the fundamental value and worth of individual lives and call for better palliative, social and psychological care for those who are dying, desperate or distressed.”