Chai Brady
Assisted suicide reflects a “failure of compassion on the part of society” the Catholic bishops have warned in their submission to the Oireachtas committee reviewing legislation that, if passed, would legalise euthanasia.
Good palliative care not assisted suicide “offers terminally-ill people the best possibility of achieving ‘a dignified and peaceful end of life’,” the Church leaders said in their submission.
They insist that assisted suicide “is a failure to respond to the challenge of caring for terminally-ill patients as they approach the end of their lives”.
The bishops also pointed to the fact that the legislation as drafted would “coerce the consciences of objecting healthcare providers in order to facilitate something they know to be gravely immoral and utterly incompatible with their vocation to heal.
“This burdening of conscience is unnecessary, disproportionate and seriously unjust,” the submission added.
In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the bishops say they “have been deeply moved by the level of generosity and tenderness that has been shown by so many healthcare professionals and the sacrifices that have been made by so many to protect those who are most at risk.
“Alongside that positive manifestation of genuine compassion, we note, however, that some of the written protocols which relate to the difficult and essential task of prioritising critical care resources, are shot through with language which is essentially utilitarian in its assessment of the value of human life.
“Whatever our prognosis and however limited our capacity, our value as persons is rooted in who we are rather than in our life-expectancy or our ability to reach certain standards of physical or mental performance…We contend that, the committee would best serve humanity and the common good of society by recommending to the Oireachtas that this Bill should not be passed”.
The submission – which can be read in full here – concludes by also recommending “that the Oireachtas should consider whether there is adequate provision for palliative care and, if so, whether there is sufficient energy invested in making its availability known and its purpose understood”.
Meanwhile, more than 2,700 healthcare professionals have signed an open letter stating that they are “gravely concerned” about the attempt to introduce assisted suicide.
Opponents of the bill, including the majority of geriatricians, argue that it stigmatises the elderly, sick and disabled.
The letter came as submissions close for the second stage of the Dying with Dignity Bill introduced by People Before Profit TD Gino Kenny.
One of the open letter’s signatories, geriatrician and consultant physician Dr Kevin McCarroll, told The Irish Catholic that the bill results from a prejudice against the elderly and those living with a disability.
“There is an endemic prejudice about older people and unfortunately that leads into euthanasia becoming an option,” he said.
Dr McCarroll argued that a lack of understanding of palliative care and a “simplistic understanding of dignity” are at the heart of the bill.
“Ultimately, there is a lack of understanding of what can be done in modern medicine in order to palliate patients,” he said.
“The real aim should be living with dignity and optimising their care. Some of these people talk about pressure on resources – there shouldn’t be pressure on resources, there should be good quality care,” Dr McCarroll insisted.