The conclusion in a paper “A Response to Popular Arguments Against Permitting Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) where Mental Illness Is the Sole Underlying Condition” from Justine Dembo, Udo Schuklenk and Jonathan Reggler in The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry (April 2018) reads: “Throughout much of history, society and medical professionals have made judgments on behalf of people with severe mental illness, with the benevolent intent of making decisions in their best interests. The MAID debate now highlights where strong paternalistic values persist in psychiatry. When an individual is clearly incapable with respect to medical decision making, medical professionals and substitute decision makers must step in. However, capacity must be determined on an individual basis. It is unjustifiable to exclude psychiatric patients from benefitting from a medical intervention that is designed to preserve autonomy and reduce suffering, without giving due consideration to individual variability“. Read the full article here.
