In search of a good death: Do we really know what happens in this  country?

doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7408.226

BMJ 2003;327:226 (26 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7408.226

Letter

In search of a good death

Do we really know what happens in this country?

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Rather than dwell on shortcomings in medical practiceor the law on assisted suicide in Switzerland, the Netherlandsor elsewhere, doctors in England, not just Gardner,¹ wouldhelp their patients more by asking what happens in the UnitedKingdom and why some terminally ill patients choose to endtheir lives in far from ideal circumstances in Zurich.

Gardner's objection to assisted dying lying alongside palliativecare relies on the unproved assumption that if people knewenough about symptom management, there would be no call forit.

Expectations of palliative care are very high, as are the claimsof its practitioners, but it cannot control everything evenin terminal malignancy. It is debatable whether hospices havedeliberately sequestered these aspects of dying within theirwalls, or whether a dying-denying public has chosen not toknow or inquire about these aspects of dying with their accompanyinglosses of dignity and . . . [Full text of this article]

Ramanand M Kalbag, retired neurosurgeon

Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 3QE ramkalbag@tiscali.co.uk

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