Terminally ill research participants wanted to have the option of assisted dying if they needed it, and felt they knew best when the time was right for them to die.
Assisted dying is often cast as an issue of individual autonomy, but an assisted death can have repercussions on many people — those left behind or others struggling with a chronic disease.
The stress over their ability to swallow can provoke a great deal of anxiety in patients.
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Nine states and the District of Columbia currently have laws that permit assisted dying, but the laws are so restrictive that they are often more hurdle than help.
If the bill clears its final hurdle next week, Western Australia will become the second state in Australia after Victoria to legalise voluntary assisted dying.
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A marathon round of amendments and parliamentary debate will likely see voluntary assisted dying implemented in WA in around 18 months. It's time to start preparing.
Speculative design highlights many of the questions we still need to ask when it comes to euthanasia.
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Many people might want to choose how, when, and under what circumstances they die – but diseases like dementia can complicate advance euthanasia directives.
David Goodall had a good life and he wanted a good death, even though he wasn't terminally ill. An end-of-life expert explains why he should have this right.
The Victorian assisted dying laws are based on those in Oregon, which are quite conservative. Laws in the Netherlands, Belgium and Canada are more relaxed.
Victoria’s parliament passed historic legislation to legalise assisted dying.
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Doctors often overestimate the time a patient has left to live. In the case of Victoria's assisted dying bill, an optimistic prediction could deny the patient the peaceful death they deserve.
The bill to legalise assisted dying was introduced to the NSW Legislative Council in September, 2017.
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Lindy Willmott, Queensland University of Technology; Andrew McGee, Queensland University of Technology, and Ben White, Queensland University of Technology
The main arguments used by those who voted against assisted dying – including that the bill has insufficient safeguards – in Victoria's upper house, deserve further scrutiny.
Whether politicians refer to 'assisted dying', 'assisted suicide' or 'euthanasia' tells us a lot about how they feel about the issue, and the emotional response they aim to convey.
Gendered risks challenge the idea that women will always be acting autonomously.
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One would think governments would do all they could to ensure palliative care is available to all who need it. This is not the case in Australia today.
While fear suppresses talk about dying, marriage equality involves sex.
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The assisted dying bill in Victoria – complex and significant – is engendering less heated debate than marriage equality although both tap into some of our most fundamental fears and motivations.
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford