X-Message-Number: 11738
Date: Wed May 12 19:34:15 1999  PST
Subject: Swiss Assisted Suicide
From: Edgar W Swank <>

Recently posted here re Assisted Suicide in Switzerland by Thomas
Nord ...

  There are no laws to allow assisted suicide in practice in Germany or
  Switzerland, contrary to frequent claims. To see how cases are handled,
  students may wish to refer to our quotations database.
  Euthanasia and assisted suicide are not, and never have been, legal in
the
  Netherlands."
  --
  http://www.finalexit.org/index.shtml
  http://www.finalexit.org/swiss.html
  "The Practice of Assisted Suicide in Switzerland
  A Report by Professor Meinrad Schaer, MD, President of "EXIT', Society
for
  Human Dying, Switzerland
  In my lecture given at the 11th World Conference of Right to Die
Societies
  in Melbourne (l996), I reported on the legality and practice of
assisted
  suicide in Switzerland. Today, I would like to present some practical
case
  reports illustrating the procedure.

  While the USA struggles with controversy regarding the legality of
assisted
  suicide, the Swiss legal system has condoned the practice for sixty
years.
  In contrast to practices in Holland, Australia and the various US
proposals
  where assisted suicide is limited to physician-assisted suicide, Swiss
law
  permits and EXIT practices aid to the dying by lay persons.

  Although Swiss law permits physicians and non-medical persons to assist
  suicides, the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences, like many medical
  organisations, including the American Medical Association, opposes
doctors
  helping patients to die. Swiss laws stipulate that persons who assist a
  suicide do so for humane reasons with no chance of personal gain. EXIT
  requires that the applicant be at least eighteen years old, a Swiss
  resident, mentally competent and suffering from intolerable health
problems.
  He, or she, must personally apply for the service and convince EXIT
that
  there is no coercion or third party influence involved in the decision.

  An EXIT physician considers the application and decides whether or not
  assistance can be offered. In doubtful cases, a team composed of a
lawyer,
  psychiatrist and a physician will jointly make the decision.

  The procedure of assisted suicide is as follows:

  An EXIT team member provides an anti-emetic (two DramamineQ tablets) to
the
  patient and half an hour later, 10 g.of sodium pentobarbitone is given.
  Within five minutes, the patient falls into a deep sleep and within two
  hours, with few exceptions, will die peacefully. The team member stays
with
  the patient unfit death occurs and there is always a witness present,
  usually a close relative.

  Immediately after death has occurred, the police are informed and they
  notify the appropriate officials, prosecution attorney, coroner,
  criminologist et al. who visit the scene to establish whether or not
laws
  have been violated. Since EXIT was founded in 1982, no collaborator has
ever
  been prosecuted for his participation in assisted suicide."
  Prof. Schaer's report issued by EXIT, Switzerland, and distributed by
ERGO!
  (Euthanasia Research & Guidance Organization) Junction City, OR

  Meinrad Schaer -- bio:

  A professor of social and preventive medicine at the University of Z
rich
  for over 20 years, and former Vice-Director of the Swiss Federal Office
of
  Public Health. One of the founders of EXIT - the Swiss Association for
Human
  Dying - and its president for many years. Retired."

But a friend living in Switzerland provided this later news ...

  That is what I was told:

  Till now there has not been a court decision about assisted
  suicide.  The current practice is, that the organisation 'Exit'
  gets the necessary medicaments, but the person has to take them
  by himself.  It is not allowed for other persons to give it to
  him.  It has been tolerated this way till today.

  It seams as if there has been a case about half a year ago
  which will bring the whole story to the court.  The Exit
  organisation has split itself into two parts which are
  fighting against each other.  It is expected that assisted
  suicide will be forbidden if this case goes through the court.
  And it is highly expected to happen this way.

Edgar W. Swank   <>
President - American Cryonics Society
http://www.jps.net/cryonics/

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