IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/ijphth/v65y2020i1d10.1007_s00038-019-01281-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Commonalities and differences in legal euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in three countries: a population-level comparison

Author

Listed:
  • Sigrid Dierickx

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB)
    Ghent University)

  • Bregje Onwuteaka-Philipsen

    (Amsterdam University Medical Centers)

  • Yolanda Penders

    (University of Zurich)

  • Joachim Cohen

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

  • Agnes van der Heide

    (Erasmus MC)

  • Milo A. Puhan

    (University of Zurich)

  • Sarah Ziegler

    (University of Zurich)

  • Georg Bosshard

    (University of Zurich and City Hospital Waid)

  • Luc Deliens

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

  • Kenneth Chambaere

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB))

Abstract

Objectives To describe and compare euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (EAS) practice in Flanders, Belgium (BE), the Netherlands (NL) and Switzerland (CH). Methods Mortality follow-back surveys among attending physicians of a random sample of death certificates. Results We studied 349 EAS deaths in BE (4.6% of all deaths), 851 in NL (4.6% of all deaths) and 65 in CH (1.4% of all deaths). People who died by EAS were mostly aged 65 or older (BE: 81%, NL: 77% and CH: 71%) and were mostly diagnosed with cancer (BE: 57% and NL: 66%). Home was the most common place of death in NL (79%), while in BE and CH, more variation was found regarding to place of death. The decision to perform EAS was more frequently discussed with a colleague physician in BE (93%) and NL (90%) than in CH (60%). Conclusions EAS practice characteristics vary considerably in the studied countries with legal EAS. In addition to the legal context, cultural factors as well as the manner in which legislation is implemented play a role in how EAS legislation translates into practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Sigrid Dierickx & Bregje Onwuteaka-Philipsen & Yolanda Penders & Joachim Cohen & Agnes van der Heide & Milo A. Puhan & Sarah Ziegler & Georg Bosshard & Luc Deliens & Kenneth Chambaere, 2020. "Commonalities and differences in legal euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in three countries: a population-level comparison," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 65(1), pages 65-73, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ijphth:v:65:y:2020:i:1:d:10.1007_s00038-019-01281-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s00038-019-01281-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00038-019-01281-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s00038-019-01281-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Smets, Tinne & Bilsen, Johan & Cohen, Joachim & Rurup, Mette L. & De Keyser, Els & Deliens, Luc, 2009. "The medical practice of euthanasia in Belgium and The Netherlands: Legal notification, control and evaluation procedures," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(2-3), pages 181-187, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.

      Corrections

      All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:ijphth:v:65:y:2020:i:1:d:10.1007_s00038-019-01281-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

      If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

      If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

      If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

      For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

      Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

      IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.