Dear editor,
I have been following the hospice situation for a number of years. I would like to point out that the new hospital will not be the magic solution to provide hospice care and access to MAiD for the following reasons:
1 - People prefer not to die in a hospital: acute care means heroic measures (prolonging life at all costs), whereas hospice care and MAiD imply quality of life over quantity of days. Electing MAiD currently means the patient is whisked away to another location as St. Joseph鈥檚 figuratively 鈥渨ashes their hands鈥� of the situation and forces a transfer鈥motionally and physically traumatic for the patient and family members. WHY do this to a friend or family member in their final days simply because care is being dictated by the fervent few who are unwilling to provide a legally permissible medical service?
2 鈥� Long-term care and hospice care need to be collocated (government decision). If our hospice remains at St. Joseph鈥檚 new facility, we will be faced with the mess described above.
Questions: Why should non-Catholic Christians and those of other faiths be denied services that are legally available to all Canadians? How can a public health care institution, in receipt of all residents鈥� tax dollars, refuse to provide the full range of medical services to residents of the Comox Valley?
Because it is 2017鈥� Look ahead into your future. You or someone you love may one day want access to the full range of medical services that all Canadians have. Don鈥檛 lose out! This is a huge issue being swept under the carpet quickly, without adequate public input. Island Health must ensure that people in the Comox Valley have the same rights as other Canadians.
If this letter has awakened your interest, please act! Contact Island Health CEO, Brendan.Carr@viha.ca, the Glacier View Lodge board of directors, and your MLA candidates. Let鈥檚 hold on to what we鈥檝e got!
Catherine Carston
Comox Valley
