Originally published February 22 2006
British doctors illegally assisted with patient deaths, study suggests
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A Brunel University study suggests doctors in Britain illegally assisted in the deaths of 2,865 patients in 2004.
NEARLY 3,000 patients were illegally helped to die by doctors in Britain in 2004, research suggests.
An estimated one third --- almost 192,000 --- of all those who died in 2004 had their deaths hastened by doctors using pain relief, the "double effect", the academic study by Clive Seale, of Brunel University, indicates.
Professor Seale calculated the figure of 2,865 --- amounting to eight patients every day --- from an anonymous survey of 857 GPs and hospital specialists and extrapolations from the overall annual death rate.
Published in Palliative Medicine, the survey indicated that 0.16 per cent of the 585,000 deaths in 2004, or 936, were described by doctors as voluntary euthanasia.
A further 0.33 per cent, or 1,929 cases, were described as "ending life without an explicit request from the patient", known as non-voluntary euthanasia.
Such cases usually involve patients very close to death who have previously indicated a wish for euthanasia but are unable to give a specific instruction to doctors, Professor Seale said.
Voluntary and involuntary euthanasia are illegal in Britain.
"British doctors are somewhat less willing to break the law and engage in these acts than doctors in other coun- tries," Professor Seale said.
"In general there is a culture of palliative care."
He said that 191,811 cases had been accelerated by doctors using pain relief, known medically as "alleviation of symptoms with possibly life-shortening effect".
Professor Seale added: "We have a very strong ethos of providing excellent palliative care in the UK, reflected in the finding that doctors are willing to make decisions that prioritise the comfort of patients, without striving to preserve life at the cost of suffering.
"The results suggest that providing the best patient care is a major driver behind decision-making."
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