Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 5 December 2023

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Assisted Dying

Protecting Vulnerable People: Discussion

Professor Desmond O'Neill:

I will say to the Deputy that death in general is difficult. There is a range of perceptions around it. There is a very telling article by three palliative care physicians based on Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich, which talks about how the narrative is often told by the survivors. It was based on a woman who preferred to have less pain control and less sedation. Her three children felt angry and disappointed that their mother seemed to be in pain but, in fact, she had autonomy and control. We cannot iron out every wrinkle. I think that the-----

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