Food for thought

I very much agree with The Scotsman leader that the “Unintended consequences of the proposed law [on Assisted Suicide] may be profound”. This is particularly the case since MSP Liam Mcarthur explained that his proposed law is modelled on the legislation in the US state of Oregon. In this regard, the 2023 Annual Report for the Oregon Death with Dignity Act (which was enacted in 1997) has just been published and makes for disturbing reading.

It indicates that the number of persons accessing assisted suicide has reached record levels with at least 367 deaths – an average of one a day.

Interestingly, as in previous years, the three most frequently reported end-of-life concerns of Oregonians contemplating assisted suicide did not include suffering but loss of autonomy (92 per cent), decreasing ability to participate in activities that made life enjoyable (88 per cent), and loss of dignity (64 per cent). In 159 cases, death was also motivated by a fear of being a burden on family, friends or care givers.

Other results from the 2023 report are far more alarming. Not all the deaths were quick or easy. Complications, such as seizures or regurgitating, occurred in around ten per cent of the reported cases. In the 265 unreported cases, we do not even know how many further complications may have occurred. As Oregon continues to experiment with different cocktails of lethal drugs, median times to death have increased (from 22 minutes in 1998 to 52 minutes in 2023). One individual in 2023 took more than five days to die! If this had been an execution, it would have been deemed cruel and inhumane.

Therefore, if Scottish persons want the assurance of dying in peace without suffering, then palliative care should be developed, and the dangerous procedures of assisted suicide rejected once and for all.

(Dr) Calum Mackellar Director of Research, Scottish Council on Human Bioethics,

Edinburgh