Suicide Tourism on the Rise, Doubling Since 2008

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The ongoing debate about assisted suicide and the right to die with dignity is a sensitive issue among both politicians and religious leaders around the world.

Since 1942, however, assisted suicide has been legally available in the country of Switzerland. This law does not only apply to the nation’s own citizens, but includes people from other countries as well.

People with chronic, untreatable conditions, most commonly neurological disorders including paralysis, Parkinson’s disease or Multiple Sclerosis, are among those who travel to Switzerland in search of assistance for ending their own lives. The practice has since garnered the dubious distinction of being referred to as “suicide tourism.”

Of the six right to die companies in Switzerland, four of them accept clients from other countries. Researchers investigated the records held by the Institute of Legal Medicine, located in Zurich, to glean more information about assisted suicide clients.

Using post mortem reports filed for legally assisted suicides of people from other nations, the researchers reported an increase in assisted deaths from 2008 to 2012. By comparison, assisted suicide numbers had doubled within those four years.

Other revealing data about the 611 non-Swiss clients of assisted suicide were published in the British Medical Journal, giving insight into the disposition of those who seek help to die.

•    Almost half of the foreign clients suffered from a neurological disorder, although cancer and rheumatic diseases followed closely behind.

•    One in three of the clients had more than one diagnosed condition.

•    58.5% of right to die clients were female.

•    The average age was 69 years old, but the youngest client was 23 and the oldest was 97.

•    Four of the clients chose to inhale helium, a painful method of inducing death. The remaining clients took sodium pentobarbital.

•    The highest number of clients came from Germany, totaling 268. 126 came from the UK, 66 from France, 44 from Italy, 21 from the USA, 14 from Austria, 12 from Canada, 8 from Spain and 8 from Israel.  In total, clients seeking help to die came from 31 different countries.

While the number of assisted suicides was twice as high in 2012 as compared to 2008, researchers speculate that a highly publicized death by helium inhalation caused numbers to be low for 2008 into 2009.

Nonetheless, as legislative leaders around the world continue to argue about the practice, there is no question that the exclusive practice of Switzerland’s legally assisted suicide is having an influence on other countries and furthering the discussion.

Mike Bundrant is author of the book Your Achilles Eel: Discover the Hidden Source of Negative Emotions, Bad Decisions and Self-Sabotage.

Source:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140821090647.htm

Mike Bundrant
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