A pair of Western University researchers believe there are lingering ethical questions surrounding organ donation by those who choose doctor-assisted death.
In a commentary published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Ian Ball and Robert Sibbald, in collaboration with Harvard's Dr. Robert Truog, call for new protocols to address the delicate issue.
“As voluntary euthanasia becomes an accepted option for dying patients in Canada, some people choosing this practice will want to donate their organs,” the authors wrote in the commentary. “Because voluntary euthanasia creates organ-donation opportunities that differ from existing pathways, it may be necessary to develop new protocols specific to these patients."
Up for consideration should be whether objecting doctors should be allowed to opt-out of transplanting organs from patients who choose medically assisted death and whether organ recipients should be informed about the source of the organ, according to the authors.
They go on to state new clinical measures are needed to ensure organs from this specific group are preserved in the best way possible.
“Some patients want to elect physician-assisted death and they also want to donate organs in the best possible condition. This raises the question of how protocols might change to allow both of these things to happen simultaneously,” said Dr. Ball.
The federal government introduced legislation in June 2016 legalizing medically assisted death. Since then figures from Health Canada show 3,714 people have decided to end their lives with the help of a doctor.
