Victoria has taken a significant step in reforming its voluntary assisted dying (VAD) laws, aiming to improve access and clarity for patients seeking end-of-life options. The reforms mark a shift in how voluntary assisted dying is discussed and administered in Victoria, reflecting a growing recognition of patient autonomy and the importance of open conversations in healthcare.
In a landmark shift that promises to reshape end-of-life care conversations, Victoria has taken a decisive step by scrapping a controversial ‘gag clause’ that previously prevented doctors from initiating discussions about voluntary assisted dying (VAD) with their patients.
For Dr Nick Carr and many of his colleagues, the repeal of this clause is a welcome relief. He shared the heavy burden for healthcare providers being unable to mention VAD, even when it seemed like a compassionate option for terminally ill patients in excruciating pain.
‘There’s no other medical treatment where you are banned from telling someone what their legal and viable medical options are. There’s no other circumstance where the patient is required to know about their options and a doctor can’t tell them. It’s quite perverse,’ he said.
The gag clause, which was part of the original VAD legislation passed in 2017 and enacted in 2019, was intended to protect vulnerable individuals from coercion or the feeling of being pressured into ending their lives prematurely. However, it also inadvertently created a barrier to open communication between patients and their doctors about all available end-of-life care options.
The review of Victoria’s VAD laws, which will be tabled in parliament, has highlighted that while the laws were functioning as intended, certain safeguards were actually hindering access to VAD.
The review’s findings have led to the Victorian government accepting all five recommendations, including the removal of the gag clause, increasing community awareness of VAD, and improving access for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and multicultural communities.
Another significant proposed change is the removal of the requirement for VAD applicants to be Australian citizens and Victorian residents. This change could have profound implications for individuals like Julian Bareuther, who tragically took his own life after being deemed ineligible for VAD due to his UK citizenship, despite having lived in Australia for 40 years.
The government is also considering extending the life expectancy eligibility from six months to 12 months for non-neurodegenerative diseases and removing certain assessment requirements for patients with neurodegenerative conditions.
The response from advocacy groups has been overwhelmingly positive. Jane Morris, president of Dying With Dignity Victoria, and Linda Swan, chief executive of Go Gentle, have both expressed their delight and relief at the government’s commitment to these reforms, recognising the potential for these changes to significantly reduce unnecessary suffering for terminally ill individuals and their families.
Between 2019 and 2023, 1,527 VAD permits were issued in Victoria, with 912 people opting to use the VAD substance.
The review found a high compliance rate of 99.3 per cent, with only 14 cases of non-compliance. In half of those cases, family members failed to return the VAD medication within the allotted 15 days.
Importantly, no instances of misuse were reported, reinforcing the safety and integrity of the VAD process.
The repeal of the gag clause empowers doctors to offer comprehensive guidance and support, ensuring that patients can make informed decisions about their end-of-life care based on their values and wishes.
We invite you to share your thoughts on this significant change. How do you feel about the ability to discuss voluntary assisted dying openly with healthcare professionals? Your insights are valuable, and we encourage a respectful dialogue on this sensitive topic.
Also read: End-of-life program welcome, but roll out key to success
Government has way too much control over our choices. It’s good to see Victoria making VAD more accessible. A pity Queensland politicians can’t do the same! People whose lives have no quality at all should be able to make the choice to end them, and it should NOT be up to any up-jumped power-crazed politician to decide on what terms a person can make that choice. Of course doctors should be able to discuss a patient’s options and choices with them. And it should be nobody else’s business what a doctor and his patient discuss and decide, whether or not the patient is deemed ”terminally ill” or ”likely to die within nnn months”. Why should anyone be forced to continue to live in pain and/or misery? If they are well past retirement age and they have nothing left to make life worth living, let them go.
I watched my mother die slowly, suffering hideously. I never want to wish that kind of pain on anyone. It was hell for her and for me, and for my family. To be in a situation where you feel compelled to pray that tonight is your mother’s last night, knowing that she has been praying that way for months, is not something anyone should have to suffer. I don’t want my children to suffer that way. When it’s my time, I and only I should be entitled to make the choice to go.
I 100% agree with the above post I recently picked up papers from the doctor which are Do Not Resuscitate forms if ever I get to that stage, I do not wish to a live a life in pain either mentally or physically where to end result will be the same just drawn out none of us are here in this life forever
I hope we don’t get to the depraved stage like in Canada, where poor people and depressed people commit euthanasia because they don’t want to be a burden on the health system.
Or perhaps Netherlands where children are committing it in high rates.