That's a core question and it goes to this great debate that we as a society are engaged in. It's interesting, because it's terminology that gets thrown around a lot without us really understanding it and with many of us imposing what we think on someone else in terms of quality of life or dignity.
Interestingly, over the last eight years the palliative care community, with some of the money that came through from CHIR, has gone to terminal patients asking them, what does dignity mean for you? I have a colleague in Winnipeg who's done most of this work. I once asked him to summarize in one sentence what that means. He said to me, dignity is how I see myself in your eyes.
I am reminded of when I worked in Switzerland, in the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, which is the university hospital that was the first hospital to allow assisted suicide within its walls in Switzerland. The reason why that occurred in that hospital was because a gentleman was admitted with an advanced disease. Cancer had gone to the various parts of the body. He was too weak to go back home. He had no family at home. He lived on the fifth floor of an apartment without elevators.
After two months sitting in acute hospital, out of desperation, he said, “This is not quality of life. I want you to end my life.” Instead of responding by asking the questions as a society, what are our social networks, how can we value you as a person, and how can we provide you that dignity you say you don't have at the moment, the response was to look at assisted suicide as an option to introduce in the hospital.
I think we need to have this discussion. It's an incredibly important debate. One of the recommendations we are asking for—the $20 million a year for at least five years—is so we can engage the public in these discussions and inform the public and health professionals as well.