The latest in Western Europe

Zurich voters reject ban on "suicide tourism"

2011-05-16T09:30:51Z

ZURICH (Reuters) - Voters in Zurich overwhelmingly rejected on Sunday proposed bans on assisted suicide and "suicide tourism" -- foreigners traveling to Switzerland to receive help ending their lives.

Only 15.5 percent of voters in the local referendum backed a ban on assisted suicide, while nea...

Patrick Stewart backs right to assisted death

2011-04-17T07:30:14Z

Actor Sir Patrick Stewart has declared his wish to be allowed an assisted death.

Stewart, best known for his role as Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek, spoke to The Sunday Times about his decision to become a patron of Dignity in Dying, which campaigns for a ch...

'Locked-in' patients happier than thought - study

2011-02-23T21:30:16Z

Many people with "locked-in" syndrome, in which they are conscious but completely paralysed, indicate they are happy, a finding with repercussions for assisted suicide, European doctors reported on Wednesday.

Investigators asked 168 members of the French Association for Locked-in Syndrome (ALIS) about their medical history, emotional state and quality of life, with the responses noted by ...

Spain to pass law to allow death 'with dignity'

2010-11-19T16:30:32Z

Spain's socialist government will approve a draft law in March 2011 on end-of-life care that will allow people with incurable diseases to "die with dignity", the deputy prime minister said Friday.

The law will spell out the rights of patients facing death and their families and the medical staff who care for them so they can "die without suffering", Alfredo Pere...

Daniel James Suicide

2010-11-30T13:50:23Z

...

Is euthanasia a violation of the sixth commandment?

2010-11-29T15:46:08Z

...

Chantal Sebire

2010-11-30T13:09:22Z

...

Euthanasia by the Backdoor?-End of Life, Care of the Dying in the UK

2010-11-03T09:49:57Z

...

Assisted Suicide - A UK Perspective

2010-11-03T09:46:41Z

...

Planning Your End Of Life Care

2010-11-03T00:12:22Z

...

Next Of Kin: Death Of A Loved One? Which Way Now!

2010-11-02T21:33:08Z

...

Swiss gov't rejects call to ban assisted suicide

2010-09-17T05:30:11Z

Swiss government plans to restrict, not ban, work of assisted suicide groups like Dignitas

The Swiss government has rejected calls to ban assisted suicide groups such as Dignitas but will propose new rules to restrict their work.

Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland provided the helper doesn't personally benefit from a patient's death.

The government says a majority of the groups an...

Which Countries Have Legalized Euthanasia?

2010-11-05T11:18:37Z

...

Hugh Grant is 'dreading' turning 50

2010-11-02T13:24:20Z

...

Physicians' Religious Views Linked to Care Decisions

2010-09-11T13:02:01Z

...

Religious Beliefs Influence Doctor's End-of-Life Treatment

2010-09-11T10:47:56Z

...

UK study: Nonreligious doctors hasten death more

2010-08-26T07:15:28Z

UK study: Nonreligious doctors twice as likely to hasten death of terminally ill patients

Doctors who are atheist or agnostic are twice as likely to make decisions that could end the lives of their terminally ill patients, compared to doctors who are very religious, according to a new study in Britain.

Dr. Clive Seale, a professor at Barts and th...

Euthanasia: The Right To Live By Liz Colado

2010-11-02T14:46:50Z

...

What Is the Meaning of Hospices?

2010-11-02T14:20:00Z

...

Voluntary euthanasia

2010-10-05T17:09:45Z

Assisted suicide
Main article: Assisted suicide
Assisted suicide is a form of voluntary euthanasia where the patient actively takes the last step in their death. The term "assisted suicide" is contrasted with "active euthanasia" when the difference between providing the means and actively administering lethal medicine is considered important, though in practice, the distinction can appear very hard to draw. For example, Swiss law on assisted suicide allows assisted suicide, while all...

This Blog Post is About Death. Please Read it Anyway.

2010-11-02T14:14:39Z

...

Britain the best place to die: global study

2010-07-14T10:16:08Z

Britain leads the world in the quality of care it provides for the dying, leaving many developed nations lagging a long way behind, according to a study released Wednesday.

State support for end-of-life care and an effective network of hospices put Britain top of the list of 40 countries, despite not having the best healthcare system overall, said a report by the The Associated Press reported erroneously that Germany's top criminal court legalized assisted suicide. The court didn't rule on the issue of assisted suicide. The case involved a woman in a vegetative coma who was being kept alive through an intravenous feeding tube, though not terminally ill. The court overturned the attempt...

Palliative care makes the most difference for patients

2010-11-02T15:09:24Z

...

German court rules patients can decide to end life

2010-06-25T08:45:47Z

KARLSRUHE, Germany (Reuters) - Terminally ill patients on life support should have the right to die if they want to, Germany's highest civil court said on Friday in a landmark ruling on assisted suicide.

After years of debate in Germany over euthanasia, the Federal Court of Justice upheld an appeal by a lawyer, Wolfgan...

British doctors must respect right to die

2010-05-19T21:16:07Z

British doctors face being banned from practising if they fail to respect the wishes of terminally ill patients who want to die by refusing treatment, a newspaper reported Thursday.

Citing new guidelines from doctors' regulator the General Medical Council, the Daily Telegraph said doctors must let dying patients refuse food and water ...

multiple scelerosis woman wins right to die fight directv bbc news

2010-10-09T22:59:28Z

A woman suffering from multiple sclerosis has made legal history by winning her battle to have the law on assisted suicide clarified. Debbie Purdy, 46, from Bradford, UK may go to Switzerland to end her life but feared her husband could be held responsible for helping her. No one has been prosecuted for assisting someone's death, however the current law says they could potentially face 14 years in prison. The Law "Lords" said that the law was not as clear and straightforward as it should be. ...

Dozens of urns with human ashes in Lake Zurich

2010-04-28T11:30:33Z

Dozens of urns with human ashes found in Lake Zurich, ties to assisted suicide group pondered

Swiss authorities are investigating a macabre discovery: Dozens of urns filled with human ashes stuck in the mud beneath Lake Zurich.

The surprise find — by divers searching for their boat's lost sunroof — is drawing attention to some uncomfortable aspects of assisted suicide, a practice permitted in Reuters Health) - European countries show wide variations in the percentage of terminally ill cancer patients who spend their last days at home, according to a study published online Monday.

Enabling terminally ill patients to die at home rather than a hospital is one of the goals of palliative, or end-of-life, care. And studies from various countries have found that the large majority of patients prefer to...

Religion News in Brief

2010-03-10T11:30:46Z

A campaign to give elderly Netherlands residents the right to assisted suicide has gathered more than 100,000 signatures, enough to force a parliamentary debate on the matter.

Though the idea faces a host of ethical and practical challenges, the campaign is noteworthy in a country that first legalized voluntary euthanasia for the terminally ill, under stringent conditions and medical supervision.

"Of Free Will" campaign sp...

Dutch group endorses right to suicide for elderly

2010-03-08T16:30:10Z

A campaign to give elderly people in the Netherlands the right to assisted suicide says it has gathered more than 100,000 signatures, hoping to push the boundaries another notch in the country that first legalized euthanasia.

The signatures are enough to force a debate in parliament, where it is certain to face resistance. Even if widely approved, the proposal would normally go through a lengthy process of committee work and con...

New guidelines on assisted suicide

2010-06-12T18:32:35Z

Prosecutors in England and Wales received fresh guidelines on assisted suicide to make it easier for them to decide whether to charge people who have helped sick loved ones to die.

However, mercy killers would still face the full force of the law, said Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The new guidelines follow a legal ruling and calls for clarification afte...

DPP clarifies law on assisted suicide

2010-06-12T18:32:35Z

Prosecutors in England and Wales received fresh guidelines on assisted suicide to make it easier for them to decide whether to charge people who have helped sick loved ones to die.

However, mercy killers would still face the full force of the law, said Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The new guidelines follow a legal ruling and calls for clarification afte...

England clarifies law on assisted suicide

2010-06-12T18:32:33Z

Prosecutors in England and Wales received fresh guidelines on assisted suicide to make it easier for them to decide whether to charge people who have helped sick loved ones to die.

However, mercy killers would still face the full force of the law, said Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The new guidelines follow a legal ruling and calls for clarification afte...

Mercy killers in Britain could face murder charge: DPP

2010-04-16T06:57:52Z

Mercy killers will face the full force of the law under new guidelines on assisted suicide, the head of Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said in comments published Thursday.

But those who respond to a request from a loved one to help in their suicide are unlikely to face prosecution, Keir Starmer wrote in the Times, trailing new g...

England clarifies assisted suicide law

2010-04-16T06:57:38Z

Prosecutors in England and Wales received fresh guidelines on assisted suicide Thursday that reduce the likelihood of people facing criminal charges for helping ailing loved ones to die.

However, mercy killers are still open to the full force of the law, said Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales.

He announced the new guidelines following calls for clarification in the law after dozens of cases where ...

Mercy killers in England 'will not escape justice'

2010-04-16T06:57:48Z

Mercy killers in England will face the full force of the law under new guidelines on assisted suicide, the head of the country's prosecution service said in comments published on Thursday.

But those who respond to a request from a loved one to help in their suicide are unlikely to face prosecution, Keir Starmer wrote in the Times newspaper, trailing new guidance he will unveil later in the day.

"Assisted suicide invo...

Mercy killers could face murder charges: DPP

2010-04-16T06:57:52Z

Mercy killers will face the full force of the law under new guidelines on assisted suicide, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service said in comments published Thursday.

But those who respond to a request from a loved one to help in their suicide are unlikely to face prosecution, Keir Starmer wrote in the Times, trailing new guidance he will unveil later in the day.

"Assisted suicide i...

BBC presenter faces more questions over 'mercy killing'

2010-06-12T18:32:27Z

A veteran BBC broadcaster is expected to be questioned by police for a second day on Thursday after admitting he smothered an ex-lover who had AIDS.

Ray Gosling, 70, made the confession in a television programme this week about assisted suicide, ahead of the publication of new government guidelines on the issue next week.

He sai...

BBC TV presenter arrested over mercy killing of lover

2010-06-12T18:32:27Z

A veteran BBC broadcaster was arrested on suspicion of murder Wednesday after admitting he smothered an ex-lover who had AIDS, highlighting intense debate over assisted suicide.

Ray Gosling, 70, made the confession in a television programme this week about assisted suicide, ahead of the publication of new government guidelines on the ...

Swiss to tighten assisted suicide rules, consider ban

2010-04-16T09:34:44Z

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland is looking to change the law on assisted suicide to make sure it is only used as a last resort by the terminally ill, and to limit so-called "death tourism," the government said on Wednesday.

"We have no interest, as a country, in being attractive for suicide tourism,"

2010-10-24T09:55:18Z

...

ICU stay before death common in the U.S.

2010-04-16T09:40:38Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who die in a U.S. hospital are nearly five times as likely as their counterparts in England to have spent part of their final hours in an intensive care unit (ICU).

What's more, over the age of 85, ICU usage among terminal patients is eight times higher in the U.S. than in England.

Intensive care services are expensiv...

Modern death who cares

2010-10-22T12:16:08Z

...

Watchdog to track palliative strategy

2010-10-22T12:04:39Z

...

Meningitis cases spark warnings

2010-10-22T11:51:27Z

...

Neuromuscular network set up

2010-10-22T11:51:33Z

...

Industry giants to help fight obesity

2010-10-22T11:51:33Z

...

Palliative care charity given key role

2010-10-22T11:51:26Z

...

GPstobe back work for private firms

2010-10-22T11:52:32Z

...

Next steps published for protecting vulnerable adults

2010-10-22T11:48:24Z

...

Palliative care networks failing to get off ground

2010-10-22T11:33:09Z

...

The 'Sympathetic' Road to Death: An Elderly Duty?

2010-10-24T09:55:00Z

...

Assisted Suicide ? Survey of UK nurses highlight some of the ongoing issues

2010-10-06T12:13:37Z

As the assisted suicide debate continues many issues have come to light around the argument for and against its legalisation in the UK. Disputes about the patient?s right to choose have often overshadowed the vital role played by health care professionals and the huge responsibility, ethical dilemmas and legal consequences they could face in such a contentious and sensitive situation.

There is already evidence to suggest that many health care professionals are opposed to assisted suici...

Charges unlikely for helping suicide in England

2010-04-16T10:10:53Z

Top English prosecutor: Assisted suicide unlikely to lead to criminal charges in many cases

England's top prosecutor unveiled new guidelines that could decriminalize many forms of assisted suicide, saying Wednesday that most people who help close friends or family kill themselves aren't likely to face charges.

Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions, warned that there were no guarantees but said those who helped adults end their own lives were unli...

New guidelines clarify assisted suicide laws

2010-04-16T10:10:42Z

People who help their relatives commit suicide are unlikely to be prosecuted in England and Wales provided they were motivated by compassion and the victim had a strong desire to die, officials said Wednesday.

The director of public prosecutions (DPP), Keir Starmer, unveiled new guidelines on how assisted suicide is prosecuted here, after campaign groups demanded clarification of the law.

However, he stressed that assisted suicide rem...

Cases of euthanasia jump in Belgium after new law

2010-04-16T10:25:23Z

Belgian study shows increase in euthanasia cases after practice becomes legal

Cases of euthanasia in Belgium's Flanders region soared to nearly 2 percent of all deaths in 2007 after the country legalized the practice a few years earlier, a medical study has shown.

The survey, conducted by an end-of-life research group at the Joan Downes decided to die together.

Downes — Sir Edward since he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 — and his wife ended their lives last...

Switzerland offers legal assisted suicide

2010-04-16T11:20:53Z

Switzerland offers legal assisted suicide for the terminally ill from other countries

Some countries allow incurably sick residents to receive medical help to end their lives, but Switzerland also permits foreigners to travel there for assisted suicide. Every year more than 100 terminally ill people from countries that ban the practice travel to Switzerland for assisted suicide.

They typically follow thes...

What is Your View on Assisted Suicide?

2010-10-22T07:33:25Z

...

Dutch euthanasia expert to give Londoners tips on suicide

2010-10-21T10:38:56Z

...

Cancer Patients Often Not Involved in Treatment Decisions

2010-10-23T22:21:58Z

...

1 in 3 GPs would help terminally ill die

2010-10-21T10:35:42Z

...

Luxembourg becomes third EU country to legalise euthanasia

2010-04-16T16:00:21Z

Luxembourg became on Tuesday the third European country to legalise euthanasia after the Netherlands and Belgium, as a new law went into force.

A law published in the official register said that doctors who carry out euthanasia and assisted suicides would not face "penal sanctions" or civil suits for damages and interest.

The ...

Elderly British couple end lives at Swiss clinic

2010-04-16T16:11:35Z

The assisted suicides of an elderly British couple at a Swiss clinic rekindled the fierce debate Friday over whether Britain should modify its laws to allow terminally ill patients to end their lives with a doctor's help.

A neighbor in the city of Bath, where Peter and Penelope Duff lived, said they were suffering from advanced stages of cancer.

"They were so ...

Couple die at Swiss suicide clinic

2010-04-16T16:12:06Z

An elderly British couple suffering from terminal cancer have ended their lives at an assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland.

The couple, from Bath, both died at the Dignitas clinic in Zurich on February 27, their family said.

Peter Duff, 80, had colon and liver cancer, and his 70-year-old wife, Penelope, had been suffering from a rare form of the disease, gastrointestinal stroma...

Majority back assisted suicides

2010-10-21T10:29:19Z

...

Suicide on TV condemned in Britain

2010-04-16T13:52:48Z

Suicide on TV in Britain condemned as reality television gone a step too far

The scene is difficult to watch, even for viewers inured to the subject of dying by a steady diet of violent Hollywood and television fare. Craig Ewert, a former computer scientist from Chicago, is shown lying in bed with his wife ...

Assisted suicide film stokes right to die debate in Britain

2010-04-16T13:53:30Z

A documentary showing a terminally-ill man ending his own life at a Swiss clinic was telecast in Britain on Wednesday, reigniting a debate about assisted suicide.

Craig Ewert, 59, a former university lecturer from the United States, suffered from motor neurone disease and chose to end his life rather than endure ...

UK TV station defends plans to show man's death

2010-04-16T13:53:37Z

British TV station defends plans to show terminally ill man's death at Swiss suicide clinic

A British television channel plans to show a film about an American man who commits assisted suicide at a Swiss clinic, reigniting debate over an issue that strongly divides opinion in Britain. Opponents called the broadcast a ratings-grabbing stunt.

Feelings about the issue ran so high Wednesday that

Assisted suicide film stokes right to die debate

2010-04-16T13:54:03Z

A film showing a terminally-ill man ending his own life at a Swiss clinic has reignited the debate about assisted suicide in Britain, where it was due to be screened Wednesday.

Craig Ewert, a 59-year-old former university lecturer from the United States, suffered from motor neurone disease and chose to end his li...

Briton is helped to die at Swiss clinic

2010-10-21T10:28:57Z

...

No infant euthanasia reported in Netherlands

2010-04-16T14:25:08Z

No cases of infant euthanasia were reported in the Netherlands in the first year after laws on mercy killings were expanded to cover newborns, Dutch officials said Friday.

The Netherlands legalized euthanasia for adults in 2001 in cases where the patients are suffering unbearable pain due to illness with no hope of recovery, and ask to die. Several doctors must agree before a lethal cocktail of sedatives and painkillers is admin...

Q&A: End-of-life strategy

2010-04-16T14:44:03Z

What is the end-of-life strategy?

It's the government's plan to give people more choice and control over where they end their lives.

How many people die per year?

Around 500,000 die in England each year, of whom almost two-thirds are over 75. The most common causes of death include heart disease, cancer, stroke and dementia.

Where do most people die?

More than half (58%) of people die in hospital, u...

MPs should use free parliamentary time to resolve assisted suicide issue

2010-04-16T12:37:30Z

Would you want to control the manner of your own death if you had acquired a disease for which there was no cure and faced a protracted, painful end? It's trickier than you may think.

Judges yesterday knocked back Debbie Purdy's application to the high court seeking to protect her husband from prosecution if he ever helped her on her final journey...

What the law says on assisted suicide

2010-04-16T12:39:53Z

Assisted suicide is outlawed in the UK, with the 1961 Suicide Act making it illegal to "aid, abet, counsel or procure the suicide of another". Helping somebody to die carries a prison sentence of up to 14 years.

But how that law is interpreted is unclear. The director of public prosecutions (DPP) has not prosecuted any relative of the 100 Britons who have gone abroad to end their lives at clinics run by the Swiss organisation Dignitas.

Debbie Purdy, who has multiple sclerosis...

Denial of the right to die is sheer religious primitivism

2010-04-16T16:25:49Z

The Crown Prosecution Service is considering, yet again, whether to prosecute and possibly imprison otherwise law-abiding Britons for helping their loved ones to die. The parents of Daniel James, a 23-year-old rugby player crippled in a training accident, last month accompanied him to the Dignitas clinic in England as a teenager has committed suicide in a Swiss euthanasia clinic after having become paralysed from the chest down in a training accident. Police are investigating.

Nuneaton rugby club hooker Daniel James felt his body had become a "prison" and lived in "fear and loathing" of his daily life, his parents said last night, havin...

Police investigate assisted suicide of paralysed rugby player

2010-04-16T16:31:26Z

A 23-year-old rugby player who represented England as a teenager has committed suicide in a Swiss euthanasia clinic after he was paralysed from the chest down in a training accident. Police are investigating.

Daniel James, who was a hooker with Nuneaton rugby club, felt his body had become a "prison" and lived in "fear and loathing" of his daily life, his parents said...

Police probe 'assisted suicide ' of rugby player

2010-10-21T10:25:25Z

...

Euthanasia expert banned from making university speech

2010-04-16T12:55:01Z

An expert on euthanasia has been banned from speaking at Queen's University Belfast, the university announced today.

Dr Philip Nitschke, who rejects allegations that he encourages vulnerable people to take their own lives, had been scheduled to give a lecture at Queen's on Sunday.

A university spokeswoman said the invitation had bee...

Coffee, cakes and the lethal prescriptions of 'Dr Death'

2010-04-16T16:38:01Z

He is nicknamed Dr Death, his book on voluntary euthanasia is banned in his homeland and his trip to the UK has caused an outcry. But at a hall in west London yesterday, a group of over-50s turned up to listen calmly as Dr Philip Nitschke explained in minute detail how, if they chose, they could take their own lives.

Nitschke told the audience how to obtain...

Minimally Conscious Patients May Still Feel Pain

2010-10-23T19:00:59Z

...

Jubilation in Nepal at Gurkha court ruling

2010-04-16T17:01:17Z

Jubilant former Gurkhas were on Wednesday making fresh plans for life in Britain after a landmark court ruling in London gave thousands of retired soldiers the chance to move there.

The High Court in London ruled in a test case that Gurkhas who retired from the British Army before 1997 had the rig...

Britain Tuition Tangle

2011-01-04T08:04:09Z

FILE - This is a Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010 file photo of Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as they react as their car is attacked by angry protesters in London. British police released a video Tuesday Jan. 4, 2011 of ...

Germany Partial Solar Eclipse

2011-01-05T08:02:05Z

A partial solar eclipse is pictured through clouds in Albershausen, southwestern Germany, on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/dapd, Daniel Kopatsch)

...

Australia Flooding

2011-01-05T08:06:21Z

In this photo released by the Northern Territory Police, four German tourists rest on the roof of their vehicle as they wait for their rescue from the flooded Magela Creek, near Jabiru, Australia, Monday, Jan. 3, 2011. Drenching rain that started before Christmas has flooded an area the size of France and Real Madrid's Kaka from Brazil runs with the ball during a Spanish La Liga soccer match against Getafe at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez stadium in Getafe, Spain Monday, Jan. 3, 2011. Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol, right, of Spain and his brother Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol of Spain tangles under the basket during the first half of their