Evidence of meeting #13 for Medical Assistance in Dying in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was alan.
A video is available from Parliament.
7:25 p.m.
Liberal
7:25 p.m.
The Joint Chair Hon. Yonah Martin
Thank you, Mr. Co-Chair.
Thank you so much to our witnesses for helping us understand what your experiences with MAID have been, for us to better understand and inform our committee.
My first question is for either of the Nichols in regard to what advice you would like to offer our committee, as we will be looking at recommendations to the government about MAID. What further advice would you like to give us?
7:25 p.m.
As an Individual
I've taken the liberty of writing this down.
First of all, advice: no expansion or widening of the laws or other bills until you understand what's really happening on the ground here.
The second thing is that no patient should be considered eligible for or offered MAID when they're in acute care. It's offensive. They're already in there, they're vulnerable already and that's just not an appropriate thing to do.
Also, make it necessary for practitioners to consult with family and friends and other close contacts during MAID applications and assessment processes. This is just common sense in the ability for a medical team to proceed with due diligence, to obtain all the necessary information on individuals applying for MAID. This is extremely important for vulnerable individuals like Alan, with disabilities and mental illness. We're talking death here. It can't be death on demand.
Form a federal independent review board, a group that could attend to any suspicious.... We had no one to turn to. We have written over 40 letters, to the Prime Minister, to the Honourable David Lametti.... We have written so many letters trying to find out, to give us one reason why Alan was allowed MAID.
Is it because he signed a form and he had hearing loss...? That's not good, not good enough. How many other Canadian families are going to have to go through what our families had to go through until these MAID laws are concrete and definitive, there is no grey area and they're not ambiguous? We need to address the concerns of the medical teams in adequately addressing MAID requirements before the MAID is implemented.
Also, finally, I would like to add that individuals filing for MAID, before they're approved, should have to exhaust reasonable assistance in care. Alan didn't even get a chance to have assisted living. He didn't want that, because he wasn't sure what it was really about and how it would help him in his current state of depression. I asked the nurse.... Well, actually, I asked the doctor that day. I said, “You have to stop this.” She said, “What do you want me to do, Trish? What would you have me do?” I said, “Look—this hospital has had Alan for 38 days and kept him away from our family. You give our family 38 days and I can guarantee you that you are going to have a different result. Alan has been depressed before. He has experienced this before, and he has always come back, so you're making a mistake.”
To put somebody, to literally have.... I want you to imagine that this is your brother who has had mental depression, and you are begging doctors not to take his life.
7:25 p.m.
The Joint Chair Hon. Yonah Martin
Thank you, Ms. Nichols.
Ms. Romaire, I think I have a minute or so.
I just heard you say that you want to have counselling for your family in the event you go through with MAID. I'm assuming that's one thing that you'd advise us.
Do you have anything else that you want to add?
7:30 p.m.
As an Individual
The supports that I want include counselling for my family: bereavement counselling afterwards, if I do choose MAID, family counselling beforehand and individual counselling beforehand. I think that palliative care encompasses a lot of things, like spiritual support.
It's hard. I don't know if it would have made a difference to me. I wish that I had the option to try is all I can say.
7:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Joint Chair Liberal Marc Garneau
On behalf of the committee, I want to thank the witnesses who came this evening: Ms. Nichols, Mr. Nichols, Ms. Romaire.
Your testimony this evening can only be described as, on the one hand, powerful, and on the other hand also very, very revealing. I think it has been very insightful for the committee to hear from you.
We're very glad that you took the time to tell us your stories. It was not easy for you, but we very much appreciate your coming this evening, answering our questions and making us aware of things that we really need to know about as committee members.
The committee, of course, is only partway through its work. We will continue with our work, but now with the knowledge of your testimonies this evening. Thank you very much.
Committee members, we will suspend very briefly as we go in camera for the next session.
[Proceedings continue in camera]