Advocacy
Clinical Bioethics
Palliative Care
Trainee
Marlyse Haward, MD (she/her/hers)
Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
The Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, United States
Nathalie Gaucher, MD PhD FRCPC (she/her/hers)
Associate Professor
CHU Sainte-Justine
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Yoram Unguru, MD, MS, MA
Attending Physician and Associate Professor
Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
The Children's Hospital at Sinai & Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics
Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Paul Mann, MD
Professor
Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University
Augusta, Georgia, United States
Session
Description: Made for Minors? Ethics and “Medical Assistance in Dying” for Mature Minors
Although most pediatric patients recover from illness, some suffer from intractable, incurable disease that gravely impacts their quality of life.
In Canada, “Medical Assistance [or aid] in Dying” (MAiD) is permitted for adults suffering from “grievous and irremediable medical conditions.” In the Netherlands and Belgium this assistance has included pediatric-aged patients. MAiD for mature minors is currently under consideration by the Canadian Pediatric Society.
This expert panel including philosophers, decision-scientists, physicians, lawyers, and bioethicists will examine the complex facets that make this decision so vexing for pediatric-aged patients, their caregivers, clinicians, and society. Rather than take a position, panelists will help the audience find a starting point to guide thoughtful discussions.
Panel:
Randi Zlotnik Shaul JD, LLM, PhD.
Will discuss concepts and topics in Bioethics that relate to MAID for mature minors – including
the respect for capable wishes and safeguards in pediatrics.
Kim Dalziel, BS, MSc, PhD:
Will discuss the ethical implications when seeking to measure and value child health-related quality of life, including potential paths forward.
Sydney Campbell MA, PhD candidate:
Will reflect on the "unspeakable" nature of childhood death and dying to reframe how society
understands the tension between death and hope. She will present empirical evidence gathered
from mature minors and their parents on MAiD.
Marc-Antoine Marquis, MD MSc MA:
Will explore the existential meaning of suffering as it applies to children with irremediable medical conditions.
Speaker: Randi Z. Zlotnik Shaul, JD, LLM, PhD (she/her/hers) – The Hospital for Sick Children
Speaker: Kim Dalziel, MSc, PhD – University of Melbourne
Speaker: Sydney Campbell, MA (she/her/hers) – University of Toronto
Speaker: Marc-Antoine Marquis, MD, MSc, MA – CHU Sainte-Justine