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On each anniversary of his patient Nicole\u2019s death, Dr Cameron McLaren receives a message from her mother, thanking him for helping her to die.<\/p>\n
The 33-year-old woman had a soft tissue cancer that left her weak and unable to swallow. The weight of a duvet was enough to cause intense pain.<\/p>\n
After Nicole made a request under Australia\u2019s voluntary assisted dying (VAD) system, Dr McLaren and his colleagues guided her through the process.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI administered the medication and she passed away peacefully with her mum and her family holding her hands.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s something that\u2019s hard to conceptualise – a mother thanking me for ending the life of their child. That gives you an insight into how much the patient and their family can suffer at the end of life.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The process in Australia varies between states but patients must be assessed by two doctors to confirm that they are terminally ill with less than six months (or sometimes one year) to live, and mentally competent.<\/p>\n
Dr McLaren was among the first clinicians to help terminally ill patients die in Victoria – the first state to introduce VAD in 2019. It was \u201ca very uncertain time\u201d and many medics were hesitant, he said. But after finishing his oncology training, he believed it was the right thing.<\/p>\n
Dr McLaren explained: \u201cIt didn\u2019t feel like that holistic care to look after someone for such an important journey through their cancer, chemotherapy, stopping chemotherapy, and then getting to that point and not walking the rest of the way with them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought that would be a shared perspective amongst my colleagues and it wasn\u2019t. But I tend to be strong-minded.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 40-year-old has been involved in more than 300 VAD applications, with around half of those patients receiving life-ending medication.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cIt\u2019s not where I saw my career going. But I always wanted to practise patient-centred care and support whatever decision patients made. This is just the manifestation of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
In one case, Dr McLaren assisted a blood cancer patient called Barry. Before he died, Barry said he had enjoyed \u201cthe best six weeks of the last six years\u201d.<\/p>\n
VAD freed him from the fear of suffering a fall and ending up in hospital, \u201cbecause if that happened, he had a trump card\u201d, so he went out with his wife and made the most of his time.<\/p>\n
Don’t miss… <\/strong> On another occasion, Dr McLaren visited a man in his 50s who sat bent over and could barely raise his head. Asked why he was requesting VAD, the patient replied: \u201cBecause it\u2019s cleaner than a .22 under the chin.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr McLaren said his work had prevented traumatic deaths and played a role in \u201cpalliating end of life fear\u201d. Some view VAD as incompatible with the traditional physician\u2019s pledge to \u201cdo no harm\u201d.<\/p>\n But Dr McLaren said: \u201cThe most important way to look at that is to first define what harm is. We assume that means physical harm or hastening death but for many patients it\u2019s abandonment, forcing them to endure a quality of life they\u2019re not comfortable with or a death they didn\u2019t want. That\u2019s harm.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr Clare Fellingham, a consultant anaesthetist who oversaw the introduction of VAD in part of Western Australia, said doctors were sometimes afraid of death and did not stop to consider whether further treatment is in a patient\u2019s best interests.<\/p>\n She said: \u201cWe have been seduced by the incredible advances that have been made in modern medicine in the 20th and 21st centuries.<\/p>\n \u201cThe wisdom to know when to apply that appropriately hasn\u2019t caught up with the pace of that progress. We don\u2019t ask ourselves often enough, \u2018Just because we can, does it mean we should?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
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Heartbreaking documentary captures mum’s final moments at Dignitas[LATEST] <\/strong><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/11\/590x\/secondary\/cammclaren-5120496.jpg?r=1702910029254\")
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