Canadian doctors are struggling with euthanasia – National Right to Life News

By Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

Dr. Jeff Blackmer

Jeff Blackmer, the former ethicist and current Vice President for medical professionalism with the Canadian Medical Association told Ryan Tumilty from Metro news that Canadian doctors have been telling his group that they struggle with taking part in assisted-death procedures.

He said physicians who have agreed to help a patient they knew well may find it difficult to help subsequent patients.

They will say, it was just too difficult and too traumatizing physiologically and it is not something I will go through again, he said. They really struggle with it, and for some of those that is the only one they will do.

Blackmer said some of Canadas physicians are entirely ruling out providing end-of-life assistance to future patients.

In some provinces where they have a list of providers where they may be willing to participate, I know from speaking to colleagues that some of those lists are getting shorter.

He said the CMA has not received any reports of doctors being pressured into providing assisted suicide

[Note: When Blackmer says end-of-life assistance, he actually means lethal injection. ]

The reality is that killing another human being, even if that person has asked to be killed, is innately wrong and dangerous. Canadians should actually be concerned about doctors who do not have a problem with killing their patients.

Editors note. This appeared on Mr. Schadenbergs blog and is reposted with permission.

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Canadian doctors are struggling with euthanasia - National Right to Life News