Considering medical assistance in dying for minors: the complexities of children's voices

Considering medical assistance in dying for minors: the complexities of children's voices

Singh H K; Macdonald M E; Carnevale F A

Journal of Medical Ethics

2020

children; death; euthanasia; law

Medical assistance in dying (MAID) legislation in Canada followed much deliberation after the Supreme Court of Canada's ruling in Carter v. Canada Included in this deliberation was the Special Joint Committee on Physician Assisted Dying's recommendation to extend MAID legislation beyond the inclusion of adults to mature minors. Children's agency is a construct advanced within childhood studies literature which entails eliciting children's voices in order to recognise children as active participants in constructing their own childhoods. Using this framework, we consider the possible extension of MAID legislation to most minors. We highlight important questions regarding how insights from children's voices could be mobilised in the life or death context of MAID. We conclude that children's voices have the potential to help determine their eligibility for MAID; however, incorporating children's voices in the context of MAID requires careful consideration due to the complexity of voice.

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June 2020 List