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43 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend June 2, 2004 Oregon’s suicide law helps end-of-life care Death with Dignity Act has improved treatment of pain well beyond the relatively few Oregonians who have opted for suicide, advocate tells Medford Rotary Club By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act has prompted many physicians to provide better pain relief for their terminally ill patients, says the leader of a group that supports physician-assisted suicide. In that sense, the effects of the Death with Dignity Act extend far beyond the 171 people who have used the law to hasten death, George Eighmey told the Medford Rotary Club on Tuesday. "The law is seldom used," said Eighmey, director of Compassion in Dying. "But the impact that it has had on end-of-life care in Oregon and across the United States has been tremendous." The law allows physicians to prescribe a lethal dose of medicine to patients who have less than six months to live. Eighmey noted that many people who initially contact Compassion in Dying about physician-assisted suicide reject the idea when doctors adequately treat their pain. "Our goal is not to encourage people" to end their lives, he said, "but to have it available as an option. Advertisement "Nine out of 10 people who call me change their mind when they get into hospice care," he said. Eighmey said the law has spurred the growth of hospice care in Oregon as well as other states. Oregon leads the states in the percentage of people who die in hospice care. About 37 percent of Oregonians enroll in hospice at the end of life, compared to about 19 percent in other states. Southern Oregon is the third largest source of requests for information about assisted suicide, behind metropolitan Portland and Eugene/Lane County. "It makes sense," he said. "This is a retirement area." Since 1998, when the option became available, 15 residents of Jackson and Josephine counties have used physician-assisted suicide. Eighmey said the typical person who chooses to hasten death is well-educated, earned a good income and has a long history of "fierce independence." Many classify themselves as a mix of Republican and Libertarian, "and they are used to doing things their own way." Their fear of losing personal dignity and autonomy at the end of life makes them consider assisted suicide, he said. "It’s not death we fear. It’s the dying process." In an interview after the Rotary meeting, Eighmey said Oregon’s experience with assisted suicide has changed the way many people think about end-of-life issues. Baby boomers, especially, are watching their parents die and seeing the inevitability of their own mortality. Many boomers "want to live a rich, long life," he said, "but they want to exit with some dignity." He said the law has won support over its six years because few people have used it and abuses have not surfaced. About 180,000 people died in Oregon since assisted suicide became a legal option, and of those, about 40 percent would have been eligible to obtain a lethal dose of drugs. During that time, however, fewer than one death in every 1,000 has been hastened with a fatal drug overdose. Eighmey said there was a good chance that U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft might not appeal last week’s federal Circuit Court ruling that upheld the Death with Dignity Act. He noted that all three of the judges that upheld the law in a 2-1 ruling were such strong conservatives that assisted suicide advocates were anticipating a defeat. "That opinion was written so tightly he may just say, ‘Let it go.’ " Reach reporter Bill Kettlerat 776-4492, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers