Better palliative care could cut euthanasia

Euthanasia in the Netherlands is proving detrimental to the practice of medicine and is usually avoidable, Dutch palliative care physician Dr Ben Zylicz told a meeting at the United Kingdom's House of Lords last week.

The practice of non-voluntary euthanasia--in which the patient is unable to give consent--is becoming widespread, in contravention of Dutch guidelines, warned Dr Zylicz. He …