News
“Medical aid in dying”: debate in the British Parliament (England)
Following a petition signed by “more than 155,000 people” calling for the legalization of “assisted death” for “mentally competent and terminally ill adults”, British MPs debated this subject on Monday July 4. Proposals are “in progress” in Scotland. Tonia Antoniazzi, Labor MP for Gower, who for her part underlines the “underfunding” of palliative care. As … Read more
MAID Primarily for Well-educated and White Patients Diagnosed with Cancer (USA)
Researchers at Rutgers School of Public Health and Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey analyzed data from each of the 5,329 patients across the U.S. who died from medical aid in the 23 years after Oregon became the first state to legalize it and found one demographic dominates the group: well-educated, white patients with cancer. More than … Read more
Understanding why patients request euthanasia when it is illegal (USA)
Why do patients in palliative care units request euthanasia when they know it is illegal? Euthanasia requests appear to be a willful means to remove oneself from the impasse of an existence paralyzed by suffering. It creates a space for discussion. Firstly, the study showed that patients requesting euthanasia within a PCU were unaware of … Read more
The relationship between assisted suicide and rates of non-assisted suicide (England)
The systematic review published by Cambridge University in June 2022 do not support the claims made that the introduction of EAS results in reduced rates of non-assisted suicide. Several studies reported increases in overall rates of self-initiated death and, in some cases, increased non-assisted suicide, although this latter increase was generally not significant when sociodemographic factors … Read more
Decriminalisation of cannabis, UN delves into impacts of cannabis legalisation (Europe)
Highlighted in the 2022 World Drug Report by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, cannabis remains the most widely used drug worldwide, with roughly 209 million people having used cannabis in 2020, a 23% increase from the 170 million people in 2010. As cannabis use and THC potencies increase, there has been a “notable increase” in … Read more
Decriminalisation of cannabis, high court rejects bid for work reinstatement (South Africa)
An employee who was fired after repeatedly testing positive for cannabis, in breach of company rules, has failed in their bid to be reinstated. The company had a zero-tolerance policy towards alcohol and drugs requiring employees to undergo regular tests. After failing several weekly tests the employee was charged with breaching the company’s Alcohol and … Read more
Decriminalization of cannabis, five teens, three year old girl, suffer from cannabis side effects (Thailand)
Six children suffered from cannabis side effects between June 21 and 26, 2022, Dr Opass Putcharoen, head of Chulalongkorn University’s Emerging Infectious Diseases Clinical Centre, reveals. People have bought food, beverages and products with cannabis as an additive after the plant was legalised for medical and commercial use on June 9. “The legalization of cannabis … Read more
Real World Data: More Than 800 000 lives saved by Pro-Life Pregnancy Centers since 2016 (USA)
Analysis of a nationally representative dataset reveals that since 2016 more than 800 000 lives have been saved through the community based care of pro-life pregnancy centers. Charles Donovan, President of CLI said, “ Pro-Life Centers help women fulfill their dreams by listening to their concerns and building a network of community support to partner … Read more
Japan passes bill to prevent exploitation of young people in porn (Japan)
A bill to prevent young people from being exploited in pornographic productions was passed in an effort to end the abuse of young people. The bill allows people who agree to appear in pornographic content to terminate their contracts at any time before the film’s public release as well as up to a year afterward. … Read more