World Federation of Right to Die Societies Interactive Map
WFRtDS worldquotes DEF Click on the pictures of people to read their RTD story.
Widow who paid £10,000 for terminally ill husband to die in Switzerland calls on UK to change its euthanasia laws
'The shame about it is that had the UK law been in place then those four years would have been so much more pleasant because he would have known that when he couldn't cope with it no longer he could…
Dr. Phil Show On the Right to Die Aired Oct 13, 2022
Among the guests were Philip Nitschke, founder of Exit International, Thaddeus Pope, expert on medical law and clinical ethics, and Dan Diaz who traveled to Oregon with his terminally wife, Brittany Maynard, for a peaceful death after her battle with…
World Right to Die Day November 2 and World Federation Conference
World Right to Die Day is celebrated November 2nd in participating countries around the world. The celebration was founded in France at the World Federation of Right to Die Societies Conference in 2008 and has since spread to other parts…
Human Rights Court Sides With Belgium in Euthanasia Case
The Belgian state didn't violate the rights of a person suffering from depression when it accepted her decision to go ahead with a euthanasia procedure, the European Court of Human Rights found Tuesday. Judges ruled in favor of Belgium in…
California will allow human composting as alternative to cremation or burial
Click here for more information
Patient sues Vermont over assisted suicide restrictions
A terminally-ill Connecticut woman is suing Vermont to drop their residency requirement for physician-assisted suicide. Bridgeport resident Lynda Bluestein, in addition to a Vermont physician, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Burlington last month that argues the…
Faye Girsh Will Speak at the La Jolla Riford Senior Center 9/22/22 from 1 – 3 pm
Choice, Dignity and Control at the End of Life This two-hour discussion group will give you the tools for making and communicating your choices at the end of life. We will review documents you'll need (such as Advance Directive, POLST)…
France to open debate on legalizing assisted suicide
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced a national debate meant to broaden end-of-life options. https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/france-open-debate-legalizing-assisted-suicide-89824039
Jean-Luc Godard chose to end life through assisted dying, lawyer confirms
Jean-Luc Godard, the maverick French-Swiss director who revolutionised post-war cinema in Europe, died by assisted dying, his lawyer has confirmed. The medical report on the death of the 91-year-old director said he had chosen to end his life. He “had recourse to…
An Interview with Joanne Tubbs Kelly, Author of “Walking Him Home: Helping My Husband Die with Dignity”
Click here to read the interview. https://www.5280.com/2022/08/author-joanne-tubbs-kelly-talks-about-helping-her-husband-die-with-dignity-in-colorado/
Voice Your Choice to Broaden California’s End of Life Option Act
Click here to learn more about the effort to expand the California EOLOA and how you can help. https://broadenchoice.org/
Hospices Have Become Big Business for Private Equity Firms, Raising Concerns About End-of-Life Care
"That makes dementia patients particularly profitable. Doctors have a harder time predicting whether a patient with Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia has less than six months to live, the eligibility criterion for enrollment. For-profit hospices enroll those patients…
Terminally-ill Connecticut grandma who’s suing Vermont over rule banning visitors from it’s assisted dying program says mom’s horrific cancer death inspired her lawsuit
"It is the second legal filing of its kind in America, with Oregon previously agreeing that they would allow people from out of state to access their facilities without prosecuting them for breaching the residency stipulation." Click here to read…
The Case for Medical Aid in Dying
A Maryland psychiatrist presents rational arguments in favor of medical aid in dying. Full Article
Aggregating 23 Years of Data on Medical Aid in Dying
Over 23 years, 5329 patients died by MAID, while 8451 received a prescription. More men than women died by MAID (53.1% vs. 46.9%), and non-Hispanic white individuals (95.6%) died by MAID more than other racial and ethnic groups. The median age…
Switzerland helped my wife die with dignity; she should have been given relief here
Click here for full story Many thanks to Maia for sharing this story with us.
Hearing Today on California EoLOA Lawsuit
A hearing today will decide if California's End of Life Option Act will be put on hold while a lawsuit by the Christian Medical and Dental Association moves forward. The plaintiffs argued the law violates their religious rights by forcing…
Death With Dignity Podcast
We'd like to share this great series of podcasts recorded by Andrew Flack in Oceanside, CA. He describes his project as "the story of a 33 year old man with terminal cancer exploring the physical, social-emotional, and spiritual elements correlated…
Denying Patients Physician-Assisted Suicide is a Civil Rights Issue
Please take a few minutes to read this editorial and watch the compelling video that was sent to us by Maia Calloway. https://progressive.org/latest/denying-patients-assisted-suicide-civil-right-wilder-220623/
Judge Rules California Aid-In-Dying Law Does Not Discriminate Against Disabled People
Very disappointing news. A federal judge said he cannot allow an Americans with Disabilities Act carveout to California’s assisted suicide law that would let doctors assist people too weak or disabled to ingest end-of-life medication, finding that such a provision…
What Oncology Nurses Should Understand About Medical Aid in Dying
Should oncology nurses only be familiar with these laws if they live in a state where it is legal? How might nurses support a patient who wants MAiD, yet lives in a state where it is not an option? Click here…
Sean Davison is Free and Launches a New Book
On 20 June 2022, former President of the WFRtDS Professor Sean Davison concluded his sentence of 3 years house arrest in Cape Town after taking a ‘guilty’ plea deal for the ‘murders’ (assisted suicides) of Anrich Burger, Justin Varian and…
Roundtable Death Cafe on June 29th
The Completed Life Initiative is launching a new Round Table Death Cafe series via Webex beginning Wednesday, June 29th at 9:00am Pacific Time/12:00pm Eastern Time. For more information and to register for free, please click here: https://completedlife.org/roundtable-death-cafe/
Italy Sees First Assisted Suicide After Years of Court Battles
Many thanks to Sharon for bringing this news story to our attention. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/975717?src=wnl_edit_tpal&uac=293249FX&impID=4346246&faf=1
Quebec Bill Would Enable MAiD for Alzheimer’s
A bill proposed in Quebec would include dementia patients in legal assisted dying. It will be interesting to watch how it goes as a potential model for legislative change in U.S. states. It's good to see our friend Kelly Bone…
California Dept. of Public Health EOLOA Forms and Information
The California Department of Health Center for Health Statistics and information has an informative webpage on the End of Life Option Act for patients and providers. It includes a downloadable form for Patient's Request for Aid in Dying. Click here…
New Survey Findings on Nurses’ Values and Perspectives on MAID
The American Nurses Association’s Center For Ethics and Human Rights and the University of California, San Diego Health released the results from two new comprehensive studies of more than 2,374 nurses in the United States on Medical Aid in Dying…
Upcoming TV Show on Swedish Death Cleaning
NBC’s Peacock streaming service has ordered unscripted series The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, which is based on the best-selling book by Margareta Magnusson. According to Peacock, the series will star a “Swedish Death Cleaner” who will help people who “are at a…
State Right-to-Die Statutes
Death with Dignity is a national leader in end-of-life advocacy and policy reform. Their website provides an interactive map of the U.S. with current information on their RTD laws and the status of pending legislation. Click Here for State Statues
Colorado Composts its First Human Remains
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/colorado-composts-its-first-human-remains-180979771/
Oregon ends residency rule for medical aid in dying
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/oregon-ends-residency-rule-medically-assisted-suicide-rcna21932?fbclid=IwAR3H8TwESh3hY3WnfR2eNXstDmhAND424paeTB_IPxk_1xX4mTFz_CRxeBI
Our New Mailing Address
Please note our new mailing address: Hemlock Society of San Diego P.O. Box 600481 San Diego, CA 92160
3-D Printed Suicide Pod is Now Legal in Switzerland
https://interestingengineering.com/a-3d-printed-assisted-suicide-pod-is-now-legal-in-switzerland?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=mailing&utm_campaign=Newsletter-06-12-2021 The inventor of the Sarco, Dr. Philip Nitschke, will be our guest speaker live on Zoom at our meeting on January 16, 2022 at 1:30pm. The link to register for this program can be found on the event card…
Changes in California’s End of Life Option Act Taking Effect in January
https://khn.org/news/article/new-california-law-eases-aid-in-dying-process/?utm_campaign=KHN%20-%20Weekly%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=190750941&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-82Qi87WJ4H912xRjyWoMSffv9Z7JXvz3z3NbfTzPY9ThzD1vrTImFfrjniqzim3bd1zSb1JJFEeNmmP42pjlHbsBSGKg&utm_content=190750941&utm_source=hs_email
Human Composting
For anyone interested eco-friendly burial, this is a very informative video from Caitlin Doughty at The Order of the Good Death. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LJSEZ_pl3Y
Final Exodus – Advance Planning for a Good Death
Final Exodus will teach you how to think, talk, and write about your plans for a good death. Valuable information and the latest AHCD and POLST forms are provided on this website by California attorney and HSSD member Bill Simmons.…
Good News for Californians!
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/california/articles/2021-11-04/lawsuit-briefly-blocking-california-assisted-death-law-ends
What Ways Can You Die When You’ve Had Enough of Life
https://www.thegooddeathsocietyblog.net/2021/10/24/what-ways-can-you-die-when-youve-had-enough-of-life/
Dr Rodney Syme has died aged 86 – The VE Movement Has Lost a Giant
Many Hemlockers may not know Rodney, but he was a towering voice. Faye interviewed him at length in a recent presentation, Current Issues in the Right to Die: Australia. He was a gutsy doctor — an inspiration for all and…
What’s Wrong With Advance Care Planning?
Viewpoint What's Wrong With Advance Care Planning? October 8, 2021 R. Sean Morrison, MD1,2; Diane E. Meier, MD1; Robert M. Arnold, MD3 Author Affiliations Article Information JAMA. Published online October 8, 2021. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.16430 Advance care planning (ACP) has emerged during the last 30 years as a potential response to the problem…
Governor Newsom Signs SB 380!!
https://www.fresnobee.com/news/california/article254793857.html
California Passes Major Hospice Reform Laws
https://hospicenews.com/2021/10/05/california-passes-major-hospice-reform-laws/
Head of Dutch RTD Group Detained
https://apnews.com/article/europe-health-crime-netherlands-assisted-suicide-54fd090d8a261723b9a04bcb8fea08f4
Sandy Morris Challenges California Law
September 19, 2021 Sandy Morris Challenges California Law Lisa Krieger, Mercury News Sandy Morris Challenges California Law – But How? Sandy Morris challenges California law because when found out she would die of ALS, she resolved that she would bravely,…
California State Assembly Passes SB 380
https://www.recordnet.com/story/news/state/2021/09/11/california-moves-extend-streamline-process-assisted-death/8298243002/
Happy 100th Birthday to Our Board Member Ken Watson!
https://www.lajollalight.com/news/story/2021-09-04/la-jolla-centenarian-retired-la-jolla-physicist-ken-watson-celebrates-a-century-of-having-fun
Your Experiences, Please
We’d like to hear about your experiences with loved ones, or yourself, trying to or using VSED (Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking) and also using the End of Life Option Act to achieve a peaceful death. I will compile them,…
Support CA SB 380
SB 380, the bill in the California State Legislature that would liberalize the End of Life Option Act in several important ways, is currently in The State Assembly Appropriations Committee with a hearing on August 26, 2021. The one local…
NEW VIDEO – Current Issues in the RTD: Australia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6k4Y5MbX0Y A discussion on right-to-die issues and laws in Australia led by Faye Girsh with speakers from Australia presented on July 8, 2021,
NEW Video – Current Issues in the Right to Die: Switzerland
This program was held on June 24, 2021 via Zoom. It is first in a series of presentations by Faye Girsh and Ken Watson on Current Issues in the Right to Die. Note: To view this video, click "Watch on…
Stanford Letter Project
Using the Stanford What-Matters-Most letter form and answering some simple questions, any adult can write about what matters most to them when it comes to their healthcare choices they want to make for their future when they cannot speak for…
The Father . . . a film to spark a movement ???
By Anne M. Haule, Hemlock Society Member and VolunteerRecently I went to a movie theater and saw my first movie in over 14 months of pandemic. It was so exciting to be in an actual theater again instead watching films…
We Are All One “Bad Death” Away From Becoming Right To Die Advocates
By Anne Haule, Member, Hemlock Society It’s been almost 10 years, but I still cry when I think or talk about Larry’s death. I can’t get the picture out of my mind of his deteriorating body, hooked to his catheter,…
The Inevitable: Dispatches on the Right to Die
The Inevitable: Dispatches on the Right to Die by Katie Engelhart, 2021 Review by Faye Girsh While thousands were dying from Covid 19, assisted dying laws were passed in Spain, Austria, New Mexico, being considered in both Australian and U.S.…
Dutch Push for Demedicalisation of Euthanasia Laws
April 11, 2021 (From Exit International) The Coöperatie Laatste Wil (CLW), together with thirty Dutch citizens, is taking the Dutch State to court to create the legal right for voluntary, elective dying at a time of one’s choosing that does…
Medical Emergency: The Church-State Wall Has Collapsed When It Comes To End-Of-Life Care
Kim Callinan of Compassion and Choices writes about the ways the Catholic Church's Ethical and Religious Directives (ERD's) govern what kind of treatment you will receive (or NOT) at Catholic hospitals. Many of these directives influence end-of-life care. The majority…
Do you know if your hospital has directives that would force you to receive unwanted treatment at end of life?
January 16 marks Religious Freedom Day. While people’s spiritual beliefs take on heightened meaning at the end of their life, religious freedom at this time is unfortunately an aspiration, not a reality. A Jan. 4 study in the Journal of…
In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Common, Survival Poor, in COVID-19
Medscape reported on two studies of in-hospital cardiac arrest in Covid patients. In a report from William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan, 60 of 1309 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (4.6%) had an in-hospital cardiac arrest. Of these, 54 had documented…
How Doctors Redefined Death. Is it as binary as it seems?
by Rohin Francis, MBBS, Medlife Crisis Modern technology has blurred the lines of life and death to a confusing extent. Heart transplant operations changed the definition of death. The external corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine can keep a person "alive"…
What You Should Know Before You Need a Ventilator
Covid-19 can cause Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) in which oxygen levels plunge and breathing is impossible without a ventilator. Unless there is an advance directive stating that the patient does not want ventilation, she is heavily sedated and a…
Better Endings | The Islamic Perspective on End-of-Life Care
Dr. Ramy Salah, a hospice & palliative care clinical fellow at the University of California, San Francisco discusses end of life issues from an islamic perspective.
The Ventilator: Life, Death And The Choices We Make At The End
"What if the seemingly rational choices you prefer when you're healthy no longer make sense to you when you're actually confronting death?" This poignant story is told by the husband of a nurse. Throughout her life this nurse, Stephanie, was…
What Happens When we Die?
"The more people engage and understand death and know where it's heading ... the better prepared the person is to be able to let go to the process, and the better prepared the family is to reconcile with it, for…
The questions surgeons need to ask their seniors before surgery
Judith Graham | Kevin Md, Conditions | August 13, 2019 This article talks about: "....a common complaint: Surgeons don’t help older adults and their families understand the impact of surgery in terms people can understand, even though older patients face…
Cancer Medicine is Failing Us
Cancer is the #1 diagnosis for those taking advantage of medical (or physician) aid in dying. This could be simply because the prognosis (to achieve the required six months or less to live) is more predictable than other diseases. This…
Miracle Machine Makes Heroic Rescues — And Leaves Patients In Limbo
Melissa Bailey, Kaiser Health News June 18, 2019 The latest miracle machine in modern medicine — whose use has skyrocketed in recent years — is saving people from the brink of death: adults whose lungs have been ravaged by the…
How to Make Doctors Think About Death
Opinion piece by Theresa Brown, hospice nurse. New York Times, April 27, 2019 A hospice nurses argues that lack of time is the main cause of over treatment at end of life. She suggests the development of end-of-life treatment guidelines.…
Deciding When a Life is No Longer Worth Living
by Joanne Faryon inewsource.org A report about the "vent farms" in Coronado, and the helpless people in it. In California, 4,000 men, women and children are being kept alive with machines in special wards in California’s nursing homes. "The default…
Finding Hope and Healing When Cure Is Not Possible
by MD Brad Stuart, Tracey Danaher, PhDb, Rana Awdish, MD, FCCPc, Leonard Berry, PhDd,e Mayo Clinic Proceedings XXX 2019, 1-9 This article examines how clinicians can help affected families find their way from “focused hope” (which centers on cure) to…
If A Doctor Calls Your Disease ‘Treatable,’ Beware. Here Are 10 Questions You Should Ask
By Barbara Coombs Lee, February 11, 2019 When Blake Nordstrom, one of the fourth-generation of his family to lead the Nordstrom department store chain, died in January at age 58, the extended family of Nordstrom customers and associates were not…
Achieving a Peaceful Death
BASICS: Make sure those who are involved in your care know your wishes. Document this in your Advance Directive. Appoint someone to speak for you who knows and agrees with your wishes — your Health Care Agent, who can speak…
Patients’ End-Of-Life Surrogates Aren’t As Ready As They Think
Numerous studies have demonstrated that healthcare surrogates lack knowledge of patients’ preferences. Surrogates struggle with guilt, stress, and doubt when they make decisions without knowledge of their loved ones' wishes. Surrogates should be included in the process of advance care…
Advocate Says California’s Aid-In-Dying Law Is Too Restrictive
By Marissa Cabrera, Maureen Cavanaugh, KPBS June 6, 2017. Audio: 6 min 35 seconds Hemlock Society of San Diego founder Faye Girsh discusses why the California End of Life Option Act does not go far enough.
My aunt’s struggle with assisted suicide: There was death, but not enough dignity
By Linda Van Zandt - Los Angeles Times Aug 14, 2016 "We had been forced to assist in the most bizarre fashion, jumping through seemingly random legal hoops and meeting arbitrary deadlines while my aunt suffered, and finally emptying capsules,…
The end can be sudden in advanced cancer
KevinMd.com Feb. 8, 2016 Many doctors are reluctant to talk about end of life issues. Many families want to avoid the issue altogether and are shocked when the end "suddenly" appears. Read more about doctors' reluctance to talk about end…
The I.C.U. Is Not a Pause Button
Opinion Piece By Kristen McConnell, New York Times, August 26, 2015 A nurse explains dying in an intensive care unit and corrects the impression that being in ICU is a "pause." "When I first realized that in intensive care we…
La Grande Bouffe (The Big Feast)
In this 1973 award-winning French-Italian film with Marcello Mastroianni, four gourmet friends rent a chateau. If you ever thought about how it would be to eat yourself to death, this will amuse and entertain you.
‘Rational Suicide’ Talk Increasing Among ‘Healthy’ Elderly
by Deborah Brauser Medscape April 08, 2015 Rational suicide is discussed at the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) 2015 Annual Meeting. "Our main focus was on the fact that more and more individuals are expressing the wish to end…
Why I Hope to Die at 75
Ezekiel J. Emanuel, The Atlantic, October 2014 "Americans may live longer than their parents, but they are likely to be more incapacitated. Does that sound very desirable? Not to me." Ezekiel J. Emanuel The compression of morbidity "...this theory postulates…
Dying the Good Death: The Kate Granger Story
by Lindsey Fitzharris in Medium Kate Granger, a 31-year-old physician who was diagnosed with an aggressive form of sarcoma and given less than 5 years to live decided to forgo chemotherapy. She made her decision based on quality of life.…
How Doctors Choose to Die–NYU’s Love & Let Die symposium
A discussion about doctor's views on end-of-life treatment, which turn out to be radically different than the general public's views. Most doctors do not want to die in a hospital. Most of the general public say they want to die peacefully without being in pain; but if you ask them if they would want CPR, artificial ventilation, dialysis, etc. they paradoxically say "yes."
Depression and Planned Death
by Faye Girsh, Ed.D. If you’re thinking about ending your life maybe you are depressed. Depression is a treatable condition which often leads to thoughts of dying. If you have at least five of these symptoms occurring nearly every day…
Myths Concerning Terminal Sedation And Morphine
By Erwin J. D. Kompanje - Translated from Dutch into English from the NNVE newsletter 'RELEVANT'. (Vol.30. Number 1.2004):- It is often suggested that terminal patients die sooner after having received a higher dose of morphine or terminal sedation.…
Death: A Friend to be Welcomed Not an Enemy to be Defeated
Keynote speech to the 13th National Hemlock Conference 1/10/03 by John Shelby Spong, Eighth Episcopal Bishop of Newark I am both honored and delighted to speak to this national gathering of the Hemlock Society. It is a rare experience for…
A Christian Perspective on Choice in Dying
by Bishop Shelby Spong I want them to remember me as a person who was vital to the end, as one who was in possession of all that makes me who I am, and as one who died well. My…