Tack Sylvie
Ghent University & Vrije Universiteit Brussel.
Med Law. 2011 Jun;30(2):295-306.
At present, in four European countries euthanasia and/ or physician assisted suicide (PAS) are tolerated under strict legal conditions. However, in practice these patient groups are often deprived of the possibility to undergo such decisions. Particularly Catholic health care institutions have developed policies which restrict the internal application of the law. Yet, the legitimacy of such policies is questionable. From a European human rights perspective it can be defended that the freedom of association allows hospitals to develop policies elaborating their ethical stances on euthanasia and PAS. However, to respect the patient's right to self-determination the concerned hospitals should at least inform current and future patients about the restrictive policy and deal carefully with euthanasia and PAS requests. If a patient's wish remains seriously incompatible with the ethical stances of the hospital, at least reasonable and attainable alternatives (such as a referral to a tolerant regional hospital) should be offered.
目前，在四个欧洲国家，安乐死和/或医生协助自杀（PAS）在严格的法律条件下是被容忍的。然而，在实践中，这些患者群体往往被剥夺了做出此类决定的可能性。特别是天主教医疗机构制定了限制该法律内部适用的政策。然而，此类政策的合法性值得怀疑。从欧洲人权的角度来看，可以辩称结社自由允许医院制定政策，阐述其对安乐死和PAS的伦理立场。然而，为了尊重患者的自决权，相关医院至少应告知当前和未来的患者有关限制性政策，并谨慎处理安乐死和PAS请求。如果患者的意愿仍然与医院的伦理立场严重不符，至少应提供合理且可行的替代方案（例如转介到宽容的地区医院）。
