Why do patients request euthanasia if good palliative and terminal care is available?
The Dutch health care system is accessible to all and guarantees full insurance cover for terminal and palliative care. Unfortunately, even where patients are receiving care of the highest quality, they may still regard their suffering as unbearable and plead with their doctors to terminate their lives. In such cases, euthanasia could represent a dignified conclusion to good palliative care. Palliative care is provided in a variety of settings. First of all, the incurably ill can be cared for in their own homes by general practitioners, district nurses, home health aides and other care providers. If this is not appropriate, they must be admitted to some form of residential accommodation. Traditionally, such residential terminal care has been provided in hospitals and nursing or old peoples homes. Palliative units have existed for many years in Dutch hospitals and there are several dozen nursing homes and terminal wards within old peoples homes. A more recent development is hospices and
