Do assisted dying laws work?

Posted on Friday, February 27, 2026 by exiteuthanasia
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Jean-Luc Godard, who died at his home in Rolle following an assisted suicide procedure

Yesterday’s newspapers heralded the successful passage of an assisted dying law in Jersey, an autonomous British Crown Dependency island of the British Isles. Similar proposals in Scotland, England and Wales continue to drag through respective parliaments. There is a high chance that they will simply run out steam, as many bills before them, reflecting wishes of a majority of the populace – but debated until they sink like the Titanic or just run the gauntlet and no more.

Centre stage is the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill 2025 (Leadbeater Bill) which is yo-yoing between the Commons and the Lords. As reported by the BBC:

The Leadbeater bill is in deep trouble in the Lords. Despite passing all its stages in the Commons, it seems certain it will run out of time. More than 1,200 amendments have been tabled in the Lords, 700 of those by just 8 peers.

If the bill is not passed before the end of this parliamentary session, it fails.

It will be open to another MP to reintroduce the bill after the next King’s speech, but that depends on assisted dying campaigners being able to persuade one of those at the top of the private members ballot to champion their cause.

We wish them luck with their efforts. The bill is not, in itself, badly crafted as such bills go. Currently at almost 60 pages, it covers so many fine adjustments and safeguards as to be worthy of an academic publication. If, against all odds, it succeeds, it will doubtless benefit a few people. Sadly not enough people. Nor does it go far enough. The most worrying aspect is “reporting failures”. With the means unspecified until the future, the patient will be responsible for swallowing a lethal formula. A doctor cannot intervene directly. (In countries with full assisted suicide or euthanasia laws, if the patient goes into a coma or risks surviving and worse off, the doctor would provide an injection.

Even in countries where laws have been implemented, for many, the only option after unsuccessfully trying to navigate the small print is the d-i-y self-euthanasia option. But does that mean that legislation is hopeless? We think not…

The best form of the law is post hoc enquiry. This occurs with simple regularity in Switzerland. Every assisted suicide is performed lawfully and routinely investigated by appropriate authorities afterwards.

Any person in Switzerland who for selfish motives incites or assists another to commit or attempt to commit suicide shall, if that other person thereafter commits or attempts to commit suicide is liable to prosecution.

This is similar to the model arrived at in a Glasgow University survey. It is called consequential or permissive legislation. Not because it is overly ‘permissive’: it simply permits exceptions to the law against assisted suicide where there is no wrongful motive. The legal framework goes into action afterwards rather than generating vast and complex what-if scenarios beforehand. It is also easier to apply. It is easier to investigate than something that hasn’t happened yet. It doesn’t require an army of highly trained judiciary in an already overworked backlog.

Consequential legislation is easier to enact and easier to enact under some legal systems than others. It is patient-centred rather than generating a mass of red tape to ‘protect’ doctors and other persons that might be involved. It doesn’t rely on applying precise criteria (like six or twelve months to live) to imprecise medical situations of much suffering where a date of death, even an educated guess, is unknown.

The Glasgow study (McLean & Britton) “Sometimes a Small Victory” was privately published in 1996.

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A new year, another new dawn

Posted on Tuesday, January 6, 2026 by exiteuthanasia

People following this blog, you care, and you are the first to hear this. We have been let down by Amazon, but we are far from beaten. We have stood firm for 45 years’ of publications: that’s a lot longer than Amazon! Not only that, but we have a mission to serve humanity and to do so responsibly.

Our books are being sold online – not by us – for many times the original price. That is not our aim. We are not in this to make money. Hopefully, you already have our publications. If not, new book distribution outlets are in development. Some of you have been print subscribers and contributors for ten, twenty, thirty years or more and we will do everything we can to be worthy of your trust and support. For everyone, we will keep you updated.

We have re-opened our legacy webpage, hundreds of pages and also a new website for greater visibility. They are both subject to further development, and your help and support are treasured!

Try the legacy website here. And our NEW frontpage website here.

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Well it looks like Exit is still in business... !

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Censorship by Amazon

Posted on Saturday, December 20, 2025 by exiteuthanasia

On the 21st December 2025 we received a notice from Amazon that all our books were being removed from their bookshelf. This means that they are currently only available through re-sellers (whose stocks may undoubtedly run out in the near future). Our books have been available through Amazon in the current format for more than fifteen years with only minor updates so the decision by Amazon seems to be ideological.

When we produced the world’s first self-deliverance manual it was sent out privately to members around the world. That was in 1980. Our 1993 update was made available in three different languages to other organisations free of charge. To ensure the integrity of the contents it became necessary to have a standardised print edition which could also fulfil demand. So we transferred printing, distribution and sales to Createspace – which was eventually subsumed into Amazon. Amazon paid a tiny commission, though not enough to cover costs. We continued, then as now, to rely on supporters for sufficient funding to continue the valuable work. We continue our dedication to research and maintain data-led information on self-deliverance and find ways to make it available to those who desperately need it in the face of unbearable and unrelievable suffering. Every penny of your support helps.

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When details can be important…

Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2025 by exiteuthanasia

So let’s get practical. You know the five proper methods for self-deliverance[1] (should the time ever come), but somewhere there should be a healthy nagging doubt, what else? We’ve gone to great lengths in our published books on the correct methods but such knowledge is only part of an equation for what we might call a “GOOD DEATH”.

Yes, knowing the methods inside out puts one’s mind at ease, especially absorbing the background information and supporting scientific evidence from the literature. That way, there are no last-minute doubts when you read contrary material on the Internet or from popular self-help guides proclaiming so-called ‘new methods’.

Let’s draw attention to one or two seemingly minor issues that can yet make a very big difference.

  1. Tips for easier pill swallowing
  2. Rehearsing for a Good Death: Techniques to Prepare
  3. Exploring the Concept of a ‘Good Death’: Insights and Techniques
  1. Do you find it easy to gulp down a handful of tablets? Sometimes? Always? Or ‘one at a time? There are a limited number of options for self-euthanasia by swallowing pills, and the idea of a single ‘peaceful pill’ is no more than a fantasy.[2] Pills vary enormously in size and ease of swallowing. They may be tablets – hard-compacted pills, with or without a coating; or capsules – the ingredients contained in a soft shell. Some are designed for slow release. All have their own characteristics. Grinding up tablets or emptying capsules is not always an option. One should at least know that hard tablets, without exposure to excessive temperatures or moist atmospheres, will generally last much longer than their ‘use-by’ date. But even after investigating such things, there is still the challenge of actually swallowing – something not everybody finds so simple. The medical term is dysphagia.

    Dysphagia is quite common, and more common as we get older. Fortunately, enough studies have been done to overcome it or at least make swallowing a bit easier, even for people without swallowing difficulties. Note: these methods cover ‘normal’ cases of mild dysphagia. Standing up, or at least making sure the upper body is vertical, is basic; also tilting the head back has been shown to assist in many cases.[3] Two other very specific methods are worth noting. The first is colloquially termed the ‘pop bottle method’ and was developed by a study involving 151 adults and then published in the Annals of Family Medicine. i) Fill a flexible plastic water bottle or pop bottle with water. ii) Put the tablet(s) on your tongue and close your lips tightly around the opening of the bottle. iii) Take a drink from the bottle, keeping contact between the bottle and your lips by pursing your lips and using a sucking motion. Swallow the water and the pill(s) right away. iv) Don’t let air get into the bottle as you swallow. You should feel the bottle squeeze in on itself as you swallow.

    Finally we should add that while planning in advance is important, it is equally important to remember that circumstances may change. A person may have perfected a routine with pills only to discover that their ability to swallow is not what it used to be. Always have a ‘plan B’ and, if possible, a ‘plan C’ as well! This is why we stress familiarity with more than one of the five methods.
  1. Our books suggest doing practice scenarios every so often so that methodology becomes instinctive and free of mistakes. Use the margins in the books for notes, or highlight sections of text. Some people make flashcards as prompts to avoid forgetting essential formulas, time frames and other crucial details. Memory works best when we visualise (imagine) things with all the senses. When we ran our series of hands-on workshops some years ago, all participants could attempt a ‘dry run’ or dress rehearsal to become familiar with a specific method. The atmosphere was convivial, taking things very seriously as we imagined end-of-life scenarios, but then, as a practice session came to a conclusion, we would stand up, clap, or even share some jokes. Become adept at changing the mental state. This is because it is important, on the one hand to go deep, but on the other, not to get obsessed with death. A person rehearsing at home would be wise to follow a similar path. Although most people felt fully confident at the end of a workshop, some would still come back a couple of years later for a ‘refresher’. Workshops are expensive and time-consuming to produce, and we can’t always make them available, so it might be best to plan a rehearsal session of one’s own, visualise the dilemmas and the method(s) thoroughly, as if one was in that situation, then consciously change the mood immediately afterwards with something light, upbeat and enjoyable.
  1. Many people speak of hoping one day simply to “die peacefully in their sleep”. In fact, it is very rare. ‘Dying of old age’ is also a common phrase, but it is not a medical cause of death. Instead, it refers to the increased vulnerability to diseases and health complications that occur as people age, leading to death from conditions like heart disease or pneumonia. At a TED Talk, Dr Stefanie Green posed the question, “What if you could decide at the end of your life exactly when and where your death would happen, choose who would be with you, and ensure that it would be comfortable and dignified?” adding, “You might never look at dying the same way again.” Whether you leave it to chance, whether you die with palliative care, in hospital, at home, with assisted suicide or self-deliverance, you can still take steps mentally and emotionally to feel good about it and in control as much as possible. To feel good about the life lived, feeling gratitude in many ways, forgiving others and oneself if it wasn’t perfect (who’s is?) and remembering to harness those tools at the appropriate time. Dr Green, rather like a doula, offers support to her patients as well as the option of assisted suicide: that is a possibility that most people reading this may not want, or think is highly unlikely (in their country and circumstances); but the option to counsel oneself is still there. (You can hear Dr Green’s talk if you wish using the link below.)

Footnotes

[1] See either of the books, Five Last Acts II or The Exit Path. Please note that for legal reasons, as well as to protect the unwary, we do not give specific details on dying methods on the blog itself.

[2] A single, accessible pill that can reliably cause a painless, dignified death has not been discovered, in spite of certain marketing suggestions by others that might make it seem otherwise!

[3] Schiele et al. on the other hand (see below) also suggest a method for swallowing capsules which involves placing the capsule(s) on the tongue, taking a sip of water without swallowing yet, bending the head forward by tilting your chin slightly toward your chest, then swallowing the capsule(s) and the water with the head bent forward.

Further reading and references

  • Fields J et al., Pill Properties that Cause Dysphagia and Treatment Failure, Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2015;77:79-82. doi: 10.1016/j.curtheres.2015.08.002
  • Godman H, Two tricks to make it easier to swallow pills, Harvard Health Blog July 2024. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/two-tricks-make-easier-swallow-pills-201411137515
  • Green S, The truth about assisted dying, Choosing a death that reflects your life, https://youtu.be/cvDpE0g7arY?feature=shared
  • Harnett A et al., Adult Patients with Difficulty Swallowing Oral Dosage Forms: A Systematic Review of the Quantitative Literature, Pharmacy (Basel) 2023;19;11(5):167. doi: 10.3390/pharmacy11050167.
  • NHS Rotheram et al., Strategies for safer swallowing, NHS 2021.
  • Schiele J et al., Two techniques to make swallowing pills easier, Ann Fam Med. 2014;12(6):550-2. doi: 10.1370/afm.1693. (includes patient hand-out)
  • Vilhauer J, 3 Effective Visualization Techniques to Change Your Life, https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/living-forward/201806/3-effective-visualization-techniques-change-your-life
  • Zaleskiewicz T et al., Visualizing risky situations induces a stronger neural response in brain areas associated with mental imagery and emotions than visualizing non-risky situations, Front Hum Neurosci. 2023 Sep;17:1207364. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1207364.

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All else azide… a warning on salts

Posted on Sunday, February 2, 2025 by exiteuthanasia

(from our print edition)

We warned them. We were attacked online for “not being up to date” with the “new method”. The biggest selling right-to-die influencer had categorically stated that it produces a “reliable death” …

He wasn’t the only one. Several Dutch organisations had also recommended the substance. They all explained how to get it. They code-named it Middel X. It was, in fact, sodium azide. The horrific stories started appearing in the press. Sodium Azide was lethal. We acknowledged that there had been some peaceful deaths with it but pointed out that the routes to obtaining were not very reliable and especially that there was not enough evidence to recommend it for a peaceful end to life. We were sadly proved right. Horrific cramps, convulsions and other symptoms were witnessed by persons accompanying its use.

It is not the first time well-meaning RTD groups have led others astray. We warned a Glasgow group that death by refusing food and water was not “simple”. It took newspaper reports of deaths with much suffering to convince them. We tried to convince a leading Dutch group that their reprint of one of our books with illegal alterations was dangerous.

But with azide, several people were arrested for supplying it, and fortunately the former doctor who recommended it in his book has recanted. Several others risk prosecution.

Addendum

We don’t usually comment on what we see as ill-advised methods, other than to warn about some of the most disingenuous ways of self-euthanasia. But by January of last year it was getting too much. We released our Kindle book, Five Final Acts for Peaceful Death: Exit Path Methods for Persons with Unrelievable, Unbearable Suffering at the End of Life.

We warned (pp.339-330) that “sodium azide … can be particularly dangerous, death not necessarily being quick or painless, and serious injury possible for bystanders, persons finding the body or hospital staff if special precautions not fully taken.” At that time it was still a ‘go to’ method promoted by the large organisation with the biggest media coverage on the subject. We were pleased to see – almost one year later(!) – that the struck-off doctor had finally changed his opinion. No apologies. It was just announced as a ‘news update’ (the organisation concerned relies very much on attention-grabbing ‘news’ for subscriptions).

May we stress once again that at Exit Path we are a responsible organisation. We work within the law and within science. We don’t skulk about on the Dark Web or the Grey Web. We scrutinize our material extensively. We produce books that have become a standard reference. No here-today, gone-tomorrow methods. No expensive futuristic methods out-of-reach of the ordinary person. We don’t publish detailed instructions on the Web where they can be viewed by minors. We don’t give one-to-one advice. And we don’t recommend things where there is evidence against them or insufficient evidence to recommend them.

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Peaceful Dying: Understanding and Preparing for the End

Posted on Sunday, December 15, 2024 by exiteuthanasia

A Guide to Embracing Life’s Final Chapter with Dignity and Serenity

Introduction: Death is an inevitable part of life, yet it’s often shrouded in fear and avoidance. However, approaching the end of life with peace can transform this universal experience into one of closure, dignity, and even beauty. This page is dedicated to exploring how we can all prepare for peaceful dying, whether for ourselves or for those we love.

Understanding Peaceful Dying

  • What Does Peaceful Dying Mean? Peaceful dying refers to the process where an individual passes away without significant pain, fear, or distress. It involves having one’s physical, emotional, and spiritual needs met in a supportive environment.
  • Benefits of Peaceful Dying:
    • Reduction in Suffering: Both physical and emotional pain can be minimized.
    • Dignity: Individuals maintain control over their lives, decisions, and environment.
    • Closure: Time for loved ones to say goodbye, resolve conflicts, and share love.
    • Spiritual Peace: Opportunity for personal reflection, forgiveness, and acceptance.

Preparing for Peaceful Dying:

1. Advance Care Planning:

  • Living Will: Document your medical treatment preferences.
  • Healthcare Proxy: Appoint someone to make decisions if you cannot.
  • Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) Orders: Specify life-sustaining treatments you do or do not want.

2. Emotional and Spiritual Preparation:

  • Counselling or Therapy: Address fears, regrets, or unresolved issues.
    (Recommended: Doula counselling, Death Cafes.)
  • Spiritual Guidance: Engage with spiritual leaders or practices that resonate with your beliefs.
  • Legacy Projects: Write letters, record messages, or create keepsakes for loved ones.

3. Physical Comfort:

  • Palliative Care: Focus on symptom management rather than cure. If you are in pain, make a fuss! Explore palliative care before deciding on other options (such as self-deliverance or assisted suicide).
  • Hospice Care: Specialized care for the terminally ill, focusing on comfort and quality of life.
  • Home Environment: Create a calm, familiar setting with personal items and loved ones around.

4. Community and Support:

  • Family and Friends: Open communication about your wishes and feelings.
  • Support Groups: Connect with others who understand the journey of dying.
  • Volunteers: Many organizations offer companionship and support services.

5. Legal and Financial Preparation:

  • Wills and Trusts: Ensure your estate is managed as you wish.
  • Funeral Plans: Decide in advance to ease the burden on your family.

6. Understand options for controlling one’s own end

  • Dignitas Switzerland (unless appropriate assisted dying exists in your location).
  • Exit Path materials (which should be studied in depth and well in advance if possible).

Conclusion:

Peaceful dying is not just about the end; it’s about how we live our lives until that end. By preparing for death, we can live more fully, with less fear, and ensure that our final days are filled with love, dignity, and peace. Whether for yourself or helping someone you love, taking steps towards understanding and preparing for peaceful dying can be one of the most profound gifts we give.

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A new e-book: FIVE FINAL ACTS

Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2024 by exiteuthanasia
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(Amazon cover)

A low-cost digital, updated edition of work from Five Last Acts and The Exit Path with full step-by-step illustrations and detailed evidence. In this thought-provoking digital book, the author develops practical aspects of the complex and often controversial topic of rational suicide methods. With compelling storytelling and meticulous research, the reader is taken on a journey that challenges preconceived ideas, prompting deep awareness of end-of-life methods. Whether you support or oppose the practice, this book encourages deeper contemplation of these sensitive issues.
(500 pages)

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The main part of the above book, Sections 1-5, is written primarily as a handbook to those wanting to know they possess the ‘key to the door marked Exit’ should the need one day arrive. General descriptions are followed with step-by-step methods. The Appendixes I-IV, include more technical material for researchers and readers who wish to understand the issues in even greater depth. Sections V-VIII include general information, technical replies, useful background and further contextual material.

We are giving readers of this Blog two opportunities: You are the first to be informed about Five Final Acts (e-book, above) which is due to go on sale on Amazon over the next few days and at a very low price (under £10). Having a digital edition means the work can be read discreetly on a kindle or other portable device. Like the print books, it is a large book, analyzing and detailing self-deliverance methods from many angles, critically and practically. Secondly, if you plan to purchase one of the print books, be aware that production costs mean they are due to increase in price substantially over the next few days, so now is a good time to buy one of these highly-prized manuals. Some people will also maybe choose to use the e-book as a companion to the printed matter.

The e-book is expected to have a short contents at the front and a long contents (including chapter sections) at the end of the book. More details of the print books content (and to help anyone choose between the 400+ page and the even larger compendium edition) can be found by going to the Publications section of this blog (see the Menu bar on the top photograph of the Home Page). The print books contain considerable detail. For citations, please refer to print editions. Please note that e-book formatting does not allow inclusion of certain footnotes that appear in our printed books.

As always if you are simply struggling with suicidal thoughts please seek professional help or call the Samaritans.

Finally if any of this is helpful, do please leave a review of any of the books on Amazon. It really helps.


updated! now live: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CTGM3ZSD
and https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CTGM3ZSD

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Everyone wants a peaceful death

Posted on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 by exiteuthanasia
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Download our free peaceful dying ai video (available for 30 days).
Click and choose ‘free download’

note: if you are feeling desperate or suicidal right now please contact The Samaritans.

But as you read this … 17% of dying people are dying in pain.1

It’s easy to say “most people” die peacefully: but what about the rest?
The people who aren’t “most”?

17% doesn’t even touch those dying in severe indignity, wracked by poor mobility, constant discomfort, or no longer able to do anything making life worth living. 

When we do think about death, everyone will hope to be at least in the top 80 per cent. But you actually stand a much better chance of surviving a plane crash.2 

Then there’s the many that are not in severe pain but have little or no mobility, totally dependent on others, senses afflicted and without any capacity to enjoy things that make life worthwhile. 

Even in countries where euthanasia or assisted suicide is legal, many end up dying of their diseases due to stringent regulation requirements.3 In other countries, the rate is even higher, and the option of ‘just going to Switzerland’ is not available for most people.4 

This is where Exit, the Voluntary Euthanasia Society of Scotland comes in. For more than 40 years we have researched and published self-euthanasia books with minute scientific and moral conscientiousness. For many, our work has been the final resort. When palliative care fails, when dodgy deals of lethal drugs from abroad are not the answer, and when knowledge dawns that most suicides that have not been minutely planned only end in failure, people take a deep breath and look to the science. 

We encourage anyone to seek palliative care in the first instance; to remonstrate if you don’t get the care you need. We detail ways of coping, of planning ahead, of getting the best care and of finding emotional support: but our work also includes the safest, most painless and most reliable ways of bringing things to an end if all else fails. People purchasing our books find they are not filled with white space or glossy claims. Instead, they are filled with the most detailed coverage that can be found. We have never toured the world to gather followers or subscriptions. We don’t encourage suicide: only choice. Our material is available if you need it, and best studied well in advance. If you don’t need it, well at least it will give you peace of mind for an unknown future. 

Don’t be one of the 17 per cent. 

References (links)
1. Severe pain at the end of life: a population-level observational study BMC.
2. It’s 95%. What Are Your Chances of a Surviving a Plane Crash? executiveflyers.
3. In Oregon, patients have to buy the expensive drug themselves from a pharmacy. 36% end up dying of their illness. Regulation of assisted suicide limits the number of assisted deaths Lancet. In the Netherlands, the physician may refuse a request.
4. Costs may be considerable for foreigners, up to £15,000, as well as the need to provide stringent paperwork and act covertly to avoid prevention in one’s home country.

The author is one of a small number of people worldwide with a postgraduate degree in law and ethics in medicine (all three disciplines are involved). He also underwent training by the Samaritans and hospice palliative care to understand ‘all sides’. It is with this sense and love of humanity that he dedicated work not just to academia, the leading law guides, and entries in medical journals, but to the art and science of self-deliverance — self-euthanasia — for those rational adults who want to be sure. He joined the Scottish Exit society in 1986. 

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Common queries

Posted on Monday, June 26, 2023 by exiteuthanasia

Campaigners sometimes hold different views. Our work is well-referenced throughout: we don’t feel a need to ‘justify’ it in public debate: but conflicting claims create anxiety. We cannot answer every query, but some main criticisms are fact-checked on the Responses page to put readers’ minds at rest.

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Fact check real information confirmation analysis.
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Directives or values… ?

Posted on Monday, June 5, 2023 by exiteuthanasia

… two methods, working together

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Dr Quill’s book on voluntarily stopping eating and drinking frequently refers to values. But knowing someone “cares passionately about death with dignity” will not always help the health care team, or the proxy, decide on the particular course or degree of palliative care from a panoply of end-of- life options. If the directives are not specific enough they may legally invalid. As a brief reminder, here is the letter from the editor of our print magazine which was published in the British Medical Journal. (1)

Values histories are more useful than advance directives

Winter and Cohen recognise one of the problems with advance directives when they correctly state: “The advance refusal of treatment is legally binding provided certain conditions are met …. A problem still exists unless they are precisely worded.” (2)

Traditional advance directives are sometimes becoming less useful, partly as a result of lack of data on when treatment becomes futile in different clinical scenarios. When advance directives were first introduced, the application of standard “heroic measures,” often without reasonable expectation of result was far more common than it is today. In that situation, a general advance directive about refusing, say, cardio- pulmonary resuscitation, was an appropriate statement of common sense. The situations facing modern intensive care units are far more complex. The tendency towards precise wording in advance directives to make them legally binding has made it diflicult for them to keep up with the pace of medical technology.(3)

An alternative approach that is finding increasing favour, either as an adjunct to the advance directive or as a stand alone instrument, is the “values history” Values histories relate to the declarant’s values rather than instructions. Patients’ values are recorded as a basis for decisions on medical treatment (rather than including explicit instructions on specific treatments).

They identify core values and beliefs in the context of terminal care that are important to the patient.”(4,5)

Values histories take a goal based rather than prescriptive approach, giving guidance on a policy to be implemented rather than the medical means to the end. The legal persuasiveness of them is less strong, but they may be useful adjuncts when a person is seeking to have an advance refusal respected or they may provide valuable guidance in their own right.(6) In general, the trend towards greater use of values in advance statements is more useful to patients and intensive care doctors than is the trend towards increasingly specific wording of treatments to be refused. Use of values histories should therefore be encouraged.

(Dr Quill’s book, Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking, A Compassionate, Widely Available Option for Hastening Death, edited by Timothy E. Quill, Paul T. Menzel, Thaddeus M. Pope, and Judith K. Schwarz, is available from Oxford University Press and Amazon)

(1) BMJ 1999;319:306-8.

(2) Winter R, Cohen S, ABC of intensive care: withdrawal of treatment.

(3) Docker C, Living wills/advance directives. In: McLean S, ed. Contemporary issues in law, medicine and ethics. Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1996:179-214.
[full chapter now made free online for our readers]

(4) Gibson J, Values history focuses on life and death decisions. Med Ethics 1990;5:1-2, 17.

(5) Lambert P, Gibson J, Nathanson P, The values history: an innovation in surrogate medical decision-making. Law Med Health Care 1990:18:202-12.

(6) Docker C, Living wills. In: Finance and law for the elderly client. London: Butterworths-Tolley.

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The Emperor’s new clothes?

Posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2021 by exiteuthanasia

We get many queries about miscellaneous ideas that people have found on the Internet or from popular movements ‘recommending’ certain methods. We would ask you to understand that it takes much time and work firstly to investigate other methods but secondly considerable much-needed resources to produce authoritative documents explaining exactly the science that compels us to say when we do not recommend them. A glance through any toxicological manual (e.g. Wexler’s four-volume Encyclopedia of Toxicology) quickly demonstratres many ways to die – though not all of them reliable or peaceful.

In cases where a genuine and necessary variation or idea arises, we usually have been the first to publish an analysis, even if such methods are only suited to some people and not others. Such cases have included compression, the use of nitrogen, and certain pharmaceutical combinations all of which can be obtained legally and effectively provided the proper precautions are taken.

There are best-selling books claiming to explain things quickly – and simply and sometimes they do – sometimes they contain inaccuracies or even contradict each other. We started publishing when we saw that only material that was at that time available in print was based almost entirely on anecdotal evidence. Therefore, we examine things in-depth, and provide analysis and supporting data drawing on peer-reviewed papers in the medical press and the other professions. If there is a serious scientific challenge, we respond in print, point by point. Our books appeal to serious researchers, and often people who have already consumed the popular ‘manuals’ but still have questions. Such questions cannot be answered in a single line or paragraph. We stand by our work and keep abreast of developments but the short answer is that not an awful lot has changed in the years since we released Five Last Acts II. The general public get excited about “new methods”: but often such things turn out to be the Emperor’s New Clothes.

Ed.: please note that the old website at http://www.euthanasia.cc/ although containing much information for students, is predominantly a historical resource. It will shortly be retired. New enquiries are directed to the WordPress blog.

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