Dr. Calum Miller said that if the law changes, it will be “very dangerous” as it fundamentally changes the concept of what constitutes care.
Legalizing suicide support would fundamentally change the relationship between doctors and patients, health professionals warn.
Dr. Calm Miller, a physician and researcher at Oxford University, told the Epoch Times.
Miller added that terminal illness patients can scare doctors, especially if they are struggling with mental health challenges.
He said that for patients who know that doctors are legally allowed to end their lives, “it’s easy to see people who are struggling with mental health challenges fearing to tell their doctors.”
He said, “It will scare the majority of patients who are seeking help but fear that they will be offered a suicide option if they seek help.”
Changes in the concept of care
The doctor made notes this week as it began this week to close the line-by-line scrutiny of the terminal adult (end-of-life) bill, a private member bill sponsored by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater.
Danny Kruger said in a speech at the end of the final day of the committee’s stage on Tuesday that the bill contradicts the NHS Act and the Hippocrat oath.
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“I think we should realize that it’s not healthcare that suggests legalizing it,” Kruger said.
A Conservative MP from East Wiltshire said, “I think the basics of health care in the West are violating this bill. The Hippocrate pledge states, “We don’t control poison to anyone when asked to do so.”
“This is a pledge that doctors take, and for thousands of years it has been the official ethical basis for medical practices in the West. However, current bills include the final formal abandonment of this ethical tradition.”
Similarly, Miller said that if the law changes, it would be “very dangerous” as it fundamentally changes the concept of what constitutes “care.”
“Murder is part of compassion, and it clearly suggests that it is a very dangerous idea,” he said.
“It fundamentally opposes the very heart of a medical and caring profession, and essentially makes them pointless. That’s a big part of why I think this is so dangerous,” he added.
It’s not safe anywhere
The committee was presented with dozens of amendments aimed at improving safeguards, but most of them were rejected.
Another rejected correction means that care homes and hospices assisted suicide-free zones. In other words, locations intended for care of elderly people and terminal illnesses may be obligated to allow medically promoted facilities to die in their facilities.
People will be taking part in demonstrations on November 29, 2024 to oppose the terminal adult (terminal) bill at Old Palace Yard in Westminster, London. Yui Mok/Pa Wire
“A nursing homes are not exempt. It would be scary for families who know that if their loved one is in a nursing home, they can always put it on the road towards this,” Miller said.
Protection of conscientious objections is “virtually meaningless”
Under the terms of the bill, there is a provision that allows them to opt out if doctors do not want to engage in preliminary discussions with patients seeking suicide-assisted adjuvant. However, they need to refer the patient to another doctor who believes they can be willing to make that argument.
Miller said that dissenting physicians are forced to engage in some process because they have an obligation to refer patients to others, and that the bill is forced to adhere to conscientious objections that are “virtually meaningless” and conscientious.
“There is no protection for everyone else to surround the process, including referrals,” he said.
“We’ve seen the same thing with abortions, where doctors are protected from doing abortions, but they have to introduce them,” Miller said.
A well-known incident, more than a decade ago, tested the scope of conscientious objections to the 1967 abortion law.
Implementing an invoice
Leadbeater previously argued that her bill, targeting England and Wales, has “a layer of protection and protection” against coercion, and she believes it will likely be “the world’s most robust legislation.”
On November 29, 2024, I will be taking part in a demonstration hosted by the Dignity of the Campaign Group by dying outside the parliamentary home in Westminster, London, in support of the Terminal Adult (Term of Doomsday) Bill. Stephen Rousseau/PA Wire
The Spen Valley MP asked Kiel, Prime Minister Stage, on Wednesday if he agreed to change the law with a suicide assisted correction.
The priority said that while the bill is a matter of the House, it is the government’s role to ensure that all laws passing through Congress are effective and viable.
He said the government will continue to work with Leadbeater as a sponsor of the bill, as well as any private member bill that will pass the second reading.
“And if Congress chooses to pass this bill, the government will implement it in a safe and viable way,” the prime minister said.
The bill will return to the House on April 25th for the reporting phase.
