Providing Medical Assistance in Dying – a physician’s perspective
LETHBRIDGE — When Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) became legal in Alberta, Dr. Tobias Gelber, a family physician in Pincher Creek, opted in without hesitation.
“When the legislation became available I was a very strong proponent, so I signed up right away to be a provider just to make sure that patients in and around my area have that opportunity,” says Gelber, who has provided MAID for four patients.
“I’ve had patient experiences where I’ve assisted them through the dying process before MAID was made available, and one patient in particular stands out for me. He had bad metastatic cancer. He was a very proud, stoic fellow. There was a tumour moving through his abdominal wall, and this was a very emotionally difficult way for him to go.
“In his last few days, he just looked at me and said: ‘Where’s the switch — how do I turn this off? How do I make it stop?’ His pain was well-controlled, but he was mentally anguished by having this tumour growing through his abdominal wall. It just ached for me that I could not legally assist him, in what was a major time of need for him.”