When I finally reach the end of my life – sometime in the next one hundred years – I would like a death of my own choosing!
Preferably I would like this to be:
At home
With no pain
With no discomfort
As lucid as possible
Now with all the furore around the Gosport deaths I think it is time for a rational look at end of life care. Gosport was not alone. I think that the use of opiates to hasten the death of terminally ill patients was widespread. My own father and mother were dealt with in that manner and I have no problem with that. My wife worked at a hospital in Walton and saw patients put on opiates and rapidly declining and dying. I do not have a problem with that either. If someone is in pain and distressed and has a terminal condition it seems pointless to me to prolong the agony.
However, I do have a problem when it is all carried out in a clandestine manner because of the legal implications. I would like to be consulted if I am able. Failing that I would like my immediate relatives to be consulted and for my wishes to be followed.
I think the law needs to respect the wishes of dying people. I would like to have the right to decide on my life and death. I would like to have a say in how much pain-killing I received and whether I had any reasonable standard of life. I want the choice!!