THE REGIONAL GOVERNMENT this week approved a law guaranteeing citizens of Andalusia a “dignified death”.
The new law, the Ley de Derechos y Garantías de la Dignidad de las Personas en el Proceso de la Muerte (Law of Rights and Guarantees to Dignity in the Process of Death), is the first of its kind in Spain and regulates patients' rights during the final phase of life, guaranteeing them “freewill and the right to decide”.
One of the most important articles is the right for patients to refuse treatment that would prolong their life. It also guarantees them the right to palliative medicine even when its use could “shorten their lifespan” and prohibits the use of “painful therapy” should the patient refuse it. Finally, it gives patients the right to receive “accurate and comprehensible” medical information about their condition and prognostic in order to help them make their decision.
The law was passed with votes from all three of the main political parties in the Andalusian parliament, although the conservative Partido Popular (PP) voted against three of the law's articles. The PP wished to include a clause giving doctors the right to “conscientious objection” against the law but the motion was rejected by the PSOE and IU parties. The Junta’s legal panel said this would have to be governed by a state law rather than a regional one.
|
Share this
Twitter
Myspace
Mister Wong
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
StumbleUpon
Slashdot
Yahoo
Technorati
Newsvine
Googlize this
Blinklist
Facebook
Wikio
Meneame
Hear this text
Export PDF
Print
E-mail
Tags
To create link towards this article on your website,
copy and paste the text below in your page.
Preview :
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
