Media Release - Montreal - December 16, 2015. (Link to the Canada News wire release)
As Canada moves in the direction of legalizing euthanasia, and some provinces are discussing extending euthanasia to children, Sylvain, Sherley and five-year-old Jolyanne's message to the Prime Minister of Canada is simple. For the sake of families, please do not support euthanasia. Sylvain and Sherley believe euthanasia is dangerous. They are convinced that those who cannot fight will be persuaded to give up too quickly and, in some cases, euthanize their loved ones. As Sylvain says in this heart-touching video, if he had listened to the doctors' advice when everything looked so grim, he would now be alone without the two women he loves most in his life—his wife Sherley and his precious daughter Jolyanne.
Sylvain and Sherley are a Canadian couple living near Montreal who were faced with many of these pressures. They were discouraged from continuing the pregnancy of their future daughter, Jolyanne, at 27 weeks of pregnancy because they were told she would be a Down's baby (erroneous diagnosis) with a malformed esophagus (esophageal atresia). Despite the many medical challenges, Jolyanne thrives today and is the joy of Sylvain's and Sherley's life.
Only two years after Jolyanne was born, Sherley was in a coma and on life support because of pneumonia. Sylvain was told his wife's chances of survival were extremely poor. He was also told that if Sherley survived, she would have no quality of life. The doctors pressured him to disconnect his wife from life support. Despite the pressures, he fought back to save his wife's life.
Quebec passed a law on June 5, 2014 to permit euthanasia. In 2013, prior to the law being passed, the Quebec Human Rights and Youth Commission recommended extending euthanasia to children. A recently released report from an Ontario advisory group is also recommending children be free to "choose" euthanasia.
In this controversy, physicians and patients have been speaking out against euthanasia for many reasons:
- Euthanasia is not medical care,
- Euthanasia contradicts a physician's code of conduct, which does not permit a doctor to intentionally end a person's life even if that person requests it,
- A person with a serious medical condition is often depressed and has clouded judgment,
- There are financial and social pressures,
- There are diagnostic errors,
- There are errors in predicting outcomes of a medical condition,
- Euthanasia criteria always expands. It begins with adults, then extends to children. At first only terminal illnesses are allowed, but later chronic ailments are accepted. Initially those suffering physically are selected, but the door opens wide to include the depressed.
- Palliative care relieves pain and suffering without prematurely ending a person's life but is, unfortunately, not available to the majority of Canadians. Thus, there is no free choice.
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| Dr Paul Saba |
For further information:
Dr Paul Saba, (514) 886-3447, pauljsaba@gmail.com
1 comment:
Prime Minister Trudeau should hear the cry of those in our nation who are defending life at all stages including this little girl and her family.
The culture of death brings about only more death. If Canada can afford to bring in as the PM has done, on his own, 25,000 refugees, it can certainly pay for more palliative care for our elderly and sick, so many of whom have built Canada and contributed to it. He has no right, nor does any leader in office to decide who dies and when. His job is to govern the country with freedom and security for all and that includes the elderly and sick. He must know that many outstanding doctors will leave their practise in Canada as they will not go against their conscience - God bless them. If Trudeau does not listen to them he will take Canada down a road of disaster.
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