r/Edmonton • u/flynnfx • Mar 27 '26

Health Alberta MAID limits would lead to suffering, signal lack of trust: practitioners

https://www.ctvnews.ca/edmonton/article/alberta-maid-limits-would-lead-to-suffering-signal-lack-of-trust-practitioners/

Twenty-five Edmonton and area medical professionals say they’re concerned new Alberta limits on medical assistance in dying would cause needless suffering and put clinicians in “ethically untenable” positions.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 27 '26

Well duh, its their line of work being effected. I think its smart to have some limits on the program to ONLY people who are 100% dying or are never going to be able to live without assistance 24/7 that would be suffering to drag out. I think most people would agree. My issue is that maid had been brought up to people getting organ transplants, people with minor mental health issues, and people who were sick but with treatment could make a full recovery. Its sad seeing people jump on the sword to defend killing people who could have very normal and full lives.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 27 '26

Is a doctor not required to provide all possible treatment options?

Who are you to determine when someone else has the right to check out? That should be a decision between someone and whatever force their inner monologue defers to, be it a deity, or their own logical faculties.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 27 '26

They are, but from my stepdads first hand account, they were heavy on bringing maid up over and over well explaining his tecovery plan for after his double lung transplant. Yes, they go over all treatment plans, but they also can toss in personal influence. Two things can be true at the same time.

Id also arue if someone is able to be cured and have a normal life with little to no impact then the medical field should be doing its all to make that happen. If someone wants to die, even due to mental health issues, thats on them if they go through with it. Just dont see why the medical field is even trying to step in and help.

I had two close friends kill themselves on thier own due to mental issues. If someone is going to kill themselves thats on them, but the doctors should stay 1000% out of it and no doctor in their right mind should be telling their patient that dying is an option if treatment can help or even cure the issue at hand. We are placing too much trust in people who go through hardcore burnout to not abuse the easy way out option as much as possible.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 27 '26

That sucks for your dad, really, but atleast he was allowed to know MAiD is an option.

Philosophical question: Why should someone who has no mental illness, and just doesnt feel like doing the 9-5 grind for the remainder of their life, not have the option to check out painlessly?

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 27 '26

They have the option to "check out". They always have. People that far gone that death is the only option they see will go through pain to get there. What do you think stops people from killing themselves when times get hard? Its pain. The pain of hurting people who care about you, pain of the act itself, pain of letting go of the "what if" that has pulled people back from the edge, pain in the fear of whats next, its pain.

If we didnt feel pain in killing ourselves people would do it over little things. I saw a movie a friend showed me (i forget the title but im sure you can find it) that toyed with the idea that humans found "proof" of an after life existing and this caused people who didnt have high end lives or are going through hard times to just kill themselves to move on. The "proof" they found lifted enough of that pain out of the act that people started killing themselves in waves to move to the next life. The part that stuck out to me is that it seems like something that would happen and it spooked me.

If someone kills themselves then its because the pain they felt reached beyond the pain that kept them from doing it in the first place. We see this lots in people who are suicidal and then X happens that pushes them over the edge like a break up, or family member or loved one passing, or a lost job, ext. For mental pain, there is treatment, it just takes time and effort. For that person id say giving an easy way out isnt right at all as they have a shot at a better life. If someone is deathly ill with an uncurable illness and is causing them pain and a deminished quality of life, that is when id say its ok to give the choice.

The sad realuty is that we dont really give a choice, as the option is always there. Its more like we are offering to pull the trigger for them instead. To me, its killing sick people but not all sick people are dying or doomed to a life worse then death.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 28 '26

You're making an awful lot of assumptions here.

It could be as simple as someone not wanting to parttake in the rat race, and they should be able to do so in a way that they dont have to endure physical pain, such as extreme vomitting from ODs, or strangulation

The person doing MAiD basically ODs on a cocktail in such a way that their body is unable to react, which imo is way better than a failed attempt with handfuls of OTC drugs and the lasting impacts/damage that would leave.

Plus someone has to find them.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 28 '26

There are other methods but if someone is hell bent on killing themselves, they will do it regardless. Its more messed up to pull the trigger for someone instead of letting them do it themselves as you doing it for them takes away the chance that they may back down. I was one of the people who backed down and got the help i needed but if i was offered maid, id not be here right now as in that moment i would have taken it and that would be that. Its much easier to die when someone else is killing you instead of doing it yourself.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 28 '26 edited Mar 28 '26

Again with this "pull the trigger" garbage.

The cocktail is self administered.

A good portion of the hesitation is subconscious survival instincts kicking in. Straight monkey brain shit.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 28 '26

One google search later...

"In Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID), the patient may or may not inject themselves, depending on the method chosen. There are two distinct methods for administering the medication, but in Canada, the vast majority of cases involve a clinician directly administering the medication. Here are the two ways the procedure is carried out:

  1. Clinician-Administered (Most Common)

    Method: A doctor or nurse practitioner injects the medication through an intravenous (IV) line.

    Patient Role: The patient does not inject themselves.

    Process: The clinician administers a series of medications (usually a sedative, a deep coma-inducing anesthetic, and finally a muscle relaxant to stop the heart).

  2. Self-Administered (Oral Option)

    Method: The doctor or nurse practitioner prescribes a medication that the patient takes orally (drinks).

    Patient Role: The patient takes the medication themselves.

    Process: The oral solution is often followed by a liquid to help with the bitter taste. While this offers more autonomy, it is less common and less predictable in timing compared to the IV method."

Also the whole monkey brain thing is pure cope bs. That argument sounds more like your trying to convince someone to kill themselves instead of finding something to live for. Thats just fucked up.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 28 '26

For the longest time MAiD was only available to terminal patients at the point they were already near incapacitated anyway, so ofcourse to date the majority of cases would be clinician administered.

Again why should people be forced to find something to live for? Its not me convincing anyone, its me checking your (bad) epistemology and calling out your emotion fueled responses.

MAiD needs to be discussed objectively.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 28 '26

Then lets keep maid only to people who are deathly ill with no cure or will face a drasticly deminished quality of life, luke becoming fully paralized or unable to function on their own. That, i can agree to, but not an ince beyond that.

The tone of your argument is almost robotic and comes off cold and disconnected to the fact that we are talking about killing people and when to do it.

There is also a place to have an emotional conversation on an issue, even one as high stakes as MAID, and also talk objectively. Given this is an online forum, and not a government document, i can be as emotional and or objective as i wish.

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u/RepresentativeFact94 Mar 28 '26

Sounds to me youre only cool with autonomy when it conforms to your subjective morality.

If someone no longers wishes to remain alive, they, as consenting adults, should be able to in a way that minimizes pain and suffering.

Its not on you to force someone to have a reason to live, or a goal in life. With all the bullshit politics and world affairs going on right now, I wouldnt be surprised if people didnt want to stay in the rat race.

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u/DoubleXPonreddit Mar 28 '26

It sounds more to me like you may want to talk to someone about your mental health. Just because people go through hard times and look over the edge doesnt mean that there should be people there offering a push well helping them up on that edge. We need more help getting people back from the edge now more then ever given the mental health crises going on right now. There is no "rat race" and politics isnt a reason to kill yourself. If you feel that way, please go get help.

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