Canadian 'death doula' fundraises to create an assisted dying 'sanctuary'

A Canadian "death doula" is seeking to expand her practice and raise money to create a "sanctuary" for MAID deaths to occur outside of a hospital or home setting in Ontario.

Key Takeaways:

• A psychotherapist who founded a "death doula" service wants to create a space for those who choose to die, along with their families, and is raising funds for this "sanctuary."

• In Canada, one does not have to be dying to receive 'medical assistance in dying.'

• Disability advocates and others have criticized the country's openness to approve state-sponsored death for individuals who are not actually dying.

• A report last year noted that hundreds of MAiD deaths in Canada were in violation of the country's laws.

The Details:

Renee Moor, a Buddhist psychotherapist and the founder and executive director of the charity, Journey Home for Empowered Living and Dying, provides “death doula services and certification,” aiding people in organizing their personal information and documents before death. Moor was reportedly inspired by the experience of losing her own father and husband, and also provides grief sessions and other bereavement services for loved ones after death.

Moor is raising funds to create a "sanctuary" for Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) in Ontario, Canada. MAiD is Canada’s assisted suicide and euthanasia program, which began in 2016. 

According to Journey Home’s website, Moor intends to create “Private, home-like rooms for individuals receiving MAiD” and a space for the dying and their loved ones.

But MAiD is also administered to those who are not in the process of dying, but somehow qualify for MAiD. According to the Canadian government, someone can qualify if he or she has “a serious and incurable illness, disease or disability (excluding a mental illness until March 17, 2027), [is] in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capability," or even those who are experiencing intolerable and unresolved physical or psychological suffering. Natural death does not have to be foreseeable for others to assist that person's suicide in Canada.

The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and disability advocates have criticized the accessibility of MAiD for persons who are not dying. Inclusion Canada has filed a Charter Challenge against the fundamentally discriminatory way MAiD has been implemented in the country.

The Bottom Line:

Since 2016, MAID has become the fifth leading cause of death in Canada, accounting for every 1 in 5 deaths.  Last year, Live Action News highlighted a report that hundreds of MAID deaths actually violated Canadian laws. It seems that the last thing Ontario needs is a "sanctuary" for more of these tragic and potentially illegal deaths.