The Netherlands were the first country to legalize euthanasia in 2002, but a Dutch doctor is being taken to court over a possible case of malpractice.
Dutch courts claim that the doctor did not do enough to gain consent from the woman, who was 74 at the time of euthanasia in 2016. This is the first case of it's kind since euthanasia was legalized in the Netherlands in 2002.
The doctor allegedly had the family of the patient restrain her while the doctor administer the drug. The doctor claims that she only acted in caution, while prosecutors claim that the woman showed resistance during the procedure. The prosecutors claim that they are not pursuing a prison sentence for the doctor, who is now retired, but want to know how Dutch euthanasia laws apply to Alzheimer's patients.
Four years before her time of death the patient was diagnosed with dementia. At the time of diagnosis she gave a formal statement claiming that she wanted to end her life before the disease progressed to the point where she would have to go into a care home. When the time came that the woman was supposed to be put into a care home the doctor decided that in order to fulfill her initial wishes, euthanasia should be carried out. The doctor's decision was then verified by two other doctor's and the patient's family.
On the day the euthanasia was carried out, a sedative was put into the woman's coffee, and when she fell asleep the doctor prepared to carry out the procedure. When she was administering the lethal drug, the patient woke up, and the doctor had her family restrain her. The family of the patient is in the favor of the doctor in this court case.
The case revolves around the question of whether or not a patient with advanced dementia should be consulted and asked for consent at the time of the euthanasia if they have given consent prior.
"A crucial question to this case is how long a doctor should continue consulting a patient with dementia, if the patient in an earlier stage has already requested euthanasia." says spokeswoman for the prosecution, Sanna van der Harg.
"The doctor freed my mother from the mental prison that she ended up in." said the daughter of the patient.
A verdict in the case is expected in the next two weeks.
Written by Devon Clare Banfield
While my mother also had dementia and later Alzheimer's, she was the most independent woman I knew before the disease. She never would have wanted to live out her days in the way that she did during her last few years. Had this been her, and she had decided on euthanasia while in her right mind, she would have wanted her wishes granted. The fact that this woman struggled when the sedative wore off was a sign of her dementia and not a sign of being in her "right mind" and knowing what was going on. So, even though this must have been devastating for the family, it is still what this woman had wished for. I do not believe…