Caring Advocates Blog & News

On 11 Nov 07, Sarah-Kate Templeton, Health Editor of The Sunday Times of London reported that dozens admit aiding relatives commit suicide by helping them travel to Dignitas, a Swiss euthanasia.

Now, Debbie Purdy, 44, who suffers from a progressive form of multiple sclerosis, want a guarantee from the director of public prosecutions (DPP) that her husband does not risk prosecution and possible jail time of up to 14 years if his help to assist her travel constitutes an offence under the 1961 Suicide Act. Ms. Purdy reportedly said, “I want absolute clarity that my husband will not be prosecuted. If the DPP does not give this assurance, then I will need to go to Dignitas a long time before I want to die. I want to wait until the last possible moment, when I can no longer bear being alive, but I cannot do that while there is a chance my husband will be prosecuted.”

So her argument is that NOW she can travel alone, sparing her husband all risk. She would rather die earlier than put him at risk.

But I would add, that she would still have quality of life beyond the point where she is able to travel even with help, if she stayed at home and decided to wait until an even later last moment… when she could then Voluntarily Refuse Food & Fluid--a legal and peaceful way to hasten dying, provided adequate measures are taken to reduce the symptoms of thirst. Certainly, one can die this way in the comfort of home, beyond the point where they are capable of travel.

The mission of Caring Advocates and the strategy of the book, "The BEST WAY to Say Goodbye: A Legal Peaceful Choice at the End of Life" is to promote a culture of extended quality of life. The book begins with this statement:

Life's greatest irony is that the freedom to control when we die, can— and often does—lead to choosing to live longer. In contrast, the greatest end-of-life tragedy is to believe that our only choices are to die illegally, violently, or prematurely—based on the fear that those in power will otherwise force us to endure months or years of unbearable pain and suffering, or to merely exist as our indignity and dependency increase.

Debby Purdy's personal interest in living longer, in protecting her husband's freedom, and making this liberty available to all by "as part of a test case to change the law" are all worthy causes. Hers is an example of PREMATURE dying. Again: Now she can travel alone; later, after enjoying more of life, she will not be able to. So the question becomes: Must she and others die prematurely to protect those who accompany them from prosecution?

The answer, even without a new ruling or law, is NO!

Her alternative, Voluntary Refusal of Food & Fluid, is a way to hasten dying that usually usually leads to death in 2 weeks or less, but the patient is often unconscious for the last few days. VRFF can be accomplished by a person whose physical state has deteriorated beyond the point where even "Husband-Assisted Travel" would be possible as it requires no physical capabilities other than the mental ability to say "No" to food and fluid when they are offered. Sometimes a psychiatric examination is necessary to establish decision-making capacity: see Terman SA. (2001a). Determining the decision- making capacity of a patient who refused food and water. J Palliat Med 15, 55 ‑60, [which happens to be a British journal] and Terman SA. (2001b). Evaluating decision-making capacity in a psychotic breast cancer patient. Primary Care Cancer 6(45‑ 8).

People who Voluntarily Refuse Food & Fluid do not experience hunger. They do experience thirst but this problem is solvable: see www.ThirstControl.com (a work in progress) or call 888 Thirst-0 (888-844 7780).

I have fasted twice, and learned how to control thirst from personal experience as well as from the literature. A new DVD explains how to deal with thirst.

The BEST WAY to Say Goodbye: A Legal Peaceful Choice at the End of Life can be purchased on Amazon.com.

For further information, contact the author, Stanley A. Terman, Ph.D., M.D., 800 64 PEACE (800 647 3223), or DrTerman@CaringAdvocates.org (DrTerman@gmail.com).