Consultations on Physician-Assisted Dying - Summary of Results and Key Findings

Annex D: List of Expert Consultations

Experts consisted of academics, lawyers, policy advisors, advocates, physicians, government officials and others from various disciplines including human rights, health and disability studies, bioethics and philosophy.

73 experts consulted through 52 meetings in 5 countries.

Canada - 27 Experts; 18 meetings

  1. Prof. Susan Sherwin – Research Professor Emerita, Department of Philosophy and Department of Gender and Women’s Studies, Dalhousie University (Halifax, NS)
  2. Prof. Jocelyn Downie – Professor of Law; Associate Dean, Graduate Studies; Schulich School of Law, Faculty of Medicine
  3. Anna MacQuarrie – Director of Global Initiatives, Policy and Human Rights, Inclusion International
  4. Prof. Dianne Pothier – Holds a BA (Hons) (Dalhousie), MA (Pol Sci) (Carleton), LLB (Dalhousie)
  5. Steven Estey – Human Rights Officer, Disabled Peoples International
  6. Me Jean-Pierre Ménard – Ménard, Martin, Avocats; Me Michelle Giroux – Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa
  7. Prof. Jocelyne St-Arnaud –  Associate Professor, Bioethics, Department of Social Medicine and Prevention, University of Montreal School of Public Health
  8. Brian L. Mishara – CRISE Director and Psychology Professor, Université du Québec à Montréal
  9. Dr. David J. Roy – Research Chair, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal
  10. The Honourable Sharon Carstairs – Former Senator and Minister with Special Responsibility for Palliative Care
  11. Dr. Isabelle Marcoux – Assistant Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa
  12. Professor Eike-Henner Kluge – Department of Philosophy, University of Victoria
  13. Joshua T. Landry – Champlain Centre for Health Care Ethics; Dr. Thomas Foreman – Director, Champlain Centre for Health Care Ethics; Michael Kekewich – Ethics Consultant, Ottawa Hospital
  14. Dr. Mary Shariff – Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Manitoba
  15. Dr. Carrie Bourassa – Professor of Indigenous Health Studies, First Nations University
  16. Yude M. Henteleff – Human rights lawyer; Palliative care advocate
  17. David Baker – Disability Rights Lawyer, Bakerlaw; Rebeka Lauks – Disability Rights Lawyer, Bakerlaw
  18. Provincial-Territorial Expert Advisory Group Convened on Physician-Assisted Dying
    • Dr. Jennifer Gibson (Co-Chair) - Director of the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics
    • Maureen Taylor (Co-Chair) - Physician Assistant in Infectious Diseases and Medical Journalist
    • Dr. Doug Cochrane - Patient Safety and Quality Officer for British Columbia and Chair of the BC Patient Safety and Quality Council 
    • Dr. Jocelyn Downie - Professor in the Faculties of Law and Medicine at Dalhousie University 
    • Dr. Nuala Kenny - Professor Emeritus of Bioethics at Dalhousie University and Former Ethics and Health Policy Advisor to the Catholic Health Alliance of Canada 
    • Dr. Trevor Theman - Registrar of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta

Oregon, USA – 15 experts; 11 meetings

  1. Kelly Hagan – Member of the neutral task force that worked on producing guidelines for Oregon’s Death with Dignity Law
  2. Kathryn Tucker – Disability Rights Legal Center
  3. Eli Stutsman and Peg Sandeen – Death with Dignity National Center
  4. Barb Hansen – Oregon Hospice Association
  5. Dr. Kenneth R. Stevens Jr. and Dr. Charles Bentz – Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Fund
  6. Bob Joondeph – Disability Rights Oregon
  7. Barbara Glidewell – Former Ombudsman and Director of Patient Relations, Oregon Health Sciences University Hospital
  8. Sue Porter, Kat West, Peter Reagan – Compassion and Choices
  9. Dr. Katrina Hedberg – Physician, State Epidemiologist
  10. Dr. Linda Ganzini – Psychiatrist/geriatrician
  11. Marilyn Golden – Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund

Netherlands – 13 experts; 7 meetings:

  1. Meeting with Netherlands government officials:
    Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sport:
    • Dr. M.C.H. (Marianne) Donker, Director of Public Health and Deputy Director General Health
    • R.J. (Jim) Terwiel, LLM, Policy Coordinator and Deputy Head Ethics department
    • E.F. (Lineke) Bloemberg, MSc, Policy Officer Euthanasia, Ethics Department Ministry of Security and Justice:
    • M. (Maartje) van der Linden, LLM, Senior advisor on medical ethics Regional Euthanasia Review Committees:
    • N.E.C. (Nicole) Visée, LLM, General Secretary to the Regional Euthanasia Review Committees
  2. Prof. J.J.M. Van Delden – Utrecht University
  3. Royal Dutch Medical Association
    • Dr. Eric van Wijlick – Senior Policy Advisor
    • Prof. Dr. Aart Hendricks – Health Law Professor, Legal Advisor
  4. Dr. Paul J. Lieverse - Cancer Institute, Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam
  5. Prof. Johan Legemaate – University of Amsterdam
  6. Parliamentary Committee on Health, Welfare and Sport
    • Renske Maria Leijten – Socialist Party
    • Linda Voortman – Green Left Party
  7. Rob Jonquière – Communications Director, World Federation for Right to Die Societies (WFRtDS), KNMG

Belgium – 10 experts; 9 meetings:

  1. Prof. Étienne Montero - Dean, Faculty of Law, Université de Namur
  2. Benoit Mores - Advisor to the Federal Minister of Affairs and Public Health
  3. Prof. Dr. Joris Vandenberghe – Professor of Psychiatry at KULeuven and a member of the Belgian Advisory Committee on Bioethics
  4. Prof. Luc Deliens – Chair of the End-of-Life Care Research Group at the Free University of Brussels (VUB) and Ghent University; Prof. Kenneth Chambaere – Researcher, End-of-life Care Research Group Vrije Universiteit Brussel & Ghent University
  5. Els Van Hoof – Belgian Federal MP for the Flemish Christian-democratic party (CD&V)
  6. Senator Jean-Jacques De Gucht – Member of the Belgian Senate and of the Flemish Parliament (Open VLD – Flemish Liberals)
  7. Jaqueline Herremans – President, Association pour le Droit de Mourir dans la Dignité Belgique (ADMD) (Dying with Dignity Belgium)
  8. Dr. Gert Huysmans – Palliative care physician and President, Federation of Palliative Care Flanders
  9. Prof. Herman Nys – Professor of Health Law, KU Leuven (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)

Switzerland – 8 experts; 7 meetings:

  1. Silvan Luley – Executive Director, Dignitas
  2. Bernhard Sutter – Executive Director, Exit
  3. Dr. Georg Bosshard – Head of Clinical Ethics, Zurich University
  4. Mr. Jürg Vollenweider – Chief Prosecutor, District See/Oberland
  5. Switzerland Federal Office of Justice:
    • Mr. Bernardo Stadelmann – Vice Director
    • Ms. Corine Klöti
  6. Dr. Karim Boubaker – Médecin cantonal du Canton de Vaud
  7. Dr. Steffen Eychmuller – Head of Palliative Care Center, Inselspital