Subsequent to an intensive three-year period of reflection, the CMQ is revealing its perspective and conclusions today regarding end-of-life care and euthanasia. The CMQ embraces the point of view of the patient who is confronting imminent and inevitable death. In such a situation, the patient looks to their physician and generally requests that they be able to die without undue suffering and with dignity. Neither surveys, nor attorneys, nor politicians can properly advise the physician and the patient facing this situation. In the majority of cases, the patient and their doctor find the appropriate analgesia that respects the ethical obligation of physicians not to preserve life at any cost, but rather, when the death of a patient appears to be inevitable, to act so that it occurs with dignity and to ensure that the patient obtains the appropriate support and relief.
Un débat interne à l’ensemble de l’Institution ordinale a été conduit avant cette expression publique. Il en résulte que la fin de la vie d’une personne dans ces situations implique profondément le corps médical selon les principes éthiques de bienfaisance et d’humanité. L’Ordre national des médecins propose donc de promouvoir une meilleure connaissance de la loi Leonetti et d’envisager des améliorations susceptibles de répondre à des situations exceptionnelles. L’Ordre national des médecins apportera sa contribution au débat sociétal quant à l’euthanasie délibérée et au suicide assisté.