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Assisted dying and coercion

553 replies

ArabellaScott · 28/01/2025 16:37

This is live right now, so I'm not sure how well linking to it will work. Copy-pasting below, aswell.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cy5k0qyled2t

'Rachel Clarke, a palliative care doctor, opts to answer a question about coercion and whether some MPs are right to feel concerned about this when considering the bill. (Earlier, MPs heard how medical and clinic staff are trained in safeguarding, though a retired GP acknowledged coercion was hard to spot.)
Clarke says she'd "strongly push back" on the suggestion coercion is something all medical staff are trained in spotting.
"I'm the kind of doctor who believes there is nothing to be gained by sugar-coating reality...about shortcomings, failings, areas where my profession the rest of the NHS are getting things wrong", she tells MPs.
"It is my clinical experience that not only are the majority of doctors not necessarily trained in spotting coercion explicitly, they're often not trained explicitly in having so-called advanced care planning conversations with patients around the topic of death and dying."'

Assisted dying bill: Most doctors not trained in spotting coercion, medic tells MPs at assisted dying hearing

Rachel Clarke, a palliative care doctor, was speaking to MPs considering the proposed law on assisted dying.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cy5k0qyled2t

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ArabellaScott · 28/01/2025 17:05

I meant to add in the OP, the reason I post it here is because this is a key issue that is likely to have the most impact on women:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/25/assisted-dying-is-sexist-report-finds/

https://archive.ph/IbjF2

'The Other Half analysed data from 100 of these killings in the UK and found that “despite claims…‘mercy killings’ are not the wanted, ‘hastened’ deaths that need assisted dying” but instead “are overwhelmingly violent domestic homicides of women, by men: and show that our society is still poor at detecting and responding to domestic abuse”.

Of the 100 UK “mercy killings” over 25 years, the report found that 88 per cent of perpetrators were male, and 78 per cent of female victims were neither terminally ill nor willing to die but were often elderly, disabled or infirm.'

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ArabellaScott · 28/01/2025 16:38

One link in that post:

'Coercion is rare but it happens - and can be difficult to spot, retired GP tells MPspublished at 10:39
10:39
Labour's Sean Woodcock asks how frequently doctors have to deal with patient coercion - a key concern opposers of the bill have.
Responding, Dr Andrew Green reiterates a point made earlier by Chris Whitty - that all medical staff have safeguarding training.
He acknowledges that patients often make important decisions with the influence and help of family members, but he says this influence is usually helpful and comes from a position of love.
Green goes on to say there are moments where influence can become coercion and that it can be difficult to spot. "My experience is that it is rare," he says, recommending that MPs look at what has happened in other parts of the world, which have more experience in this area.'

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