Gatan Barrette 'shocked' at delay in changing MUHC assisted death policy

Health MinisterGatanBarrette says he is "shocked" theMcGillUniversity Health Centre hasn't yetchanged its policy on assisted death for patients in its palliative care unit.

The MUHCannounced Monday it willchange its policy that requirespatients in its palliative care unitwho want an assisted death to be transferred to a different unit.

• MUHCrethinking palliative care unit's exemption from providing assisted death
• Palliative care patient never informed about medically-assisted dying, son says

But the change still hasn't come into effect, something Barrette told Radio-Canada shouldn't be the case.

"That kind of revision shouldn't take much time," he said.

Barrette, who sent the hospital a letter last week calling the policy "almost childlike,"said Monday he wasn't impressed with the MUHC's response to the criticism.

"I heard a news conference about the MUHC. A news conference about doctors, who offer excellent care, but I didn't hear a news conference that mentioned the patients' right to choose, and that their choice will be carried out in the spirit of the law," he said.

The case at the centre of the uproar

The MUHChas received five applications for doctor-assisted death since the law came into effect, but the controversy stems from a casewhich involved a palliative carepatient who requested anassisted death in April.

The patient received medical aid to die within three days of making his request, saidDr. ManuelBorod, director of the palliative care unit, adding nocomplaints were made to the unit or hospital officials about the way the request was carried out.

At the news conference Monday,Borod's tonewas almost defiant when discussing thethe "uproar" that ensued when the policy was made public.

Heinsisted that accusations the hospital is "trampling" the law, not following the spirit of the law and that prioritized doctors' objections to the new law overits patients' wishes are unfounded.

Policy 'doesn't make sense,' PQ says

Vronique Hivon, the Parti Qubcois MNA who drafted Quebec's right-to-die legislation, told Radio-Canadashe believes the policy is "unacceptable" despite the fact the hospital didn't receive a complaint from the patient's family.

She said the policy doesn't respect the spirit of the law, which is to put the patient's needs first.

"It doesn't make sense that the place that receives the most people who are at the end of their lives refuses to offer the care that is directed toward people at the end of their lives," she said.

Hivon said she wants Barrette to make sure other Quebec hospitals don't have similar policies.

Policy review was forthcoming, hospital says

A revision of the policy was always part of theplan,Dr.Olivier Court,president of theMUHCcouncil of physicians, dentists and pharmacists, told the news conference this morning.

Dr. EwaSidorowicz, thedirector of professional services at theMUHC, explained last week the policywas implementeddue to the staff's concerns that assisted death would be confused with other palliative treatments.

Barrette said it's up to the hospital to make sure its patients understand how medical assisted death works and to assuage fears they could be offered medical aid to die against their will.

The change is expected to come into effect inthe next few weeks.