A stunning report out of Canada reveals a physician is now under investigation over the death of a man he met outside a coffee shop.
It seems the man was depressed and had been diagnosed with a bowel disease, so the doctor took him to a hospital to be given assisted suicide.
According to a report at the Daily Mail, James MacLean, the physician, now is under mandatory clinical supervision for six months.
He’s accused of improperly delivering Canada’s assisted suicide program, Medical Assistance in Dying, to that man and another.
“MacLean was investigated after he approved Thomas Dillon, who had Crohn’s disease, for euthanasia. Dillon, 45, was deemed eligible for MAID by MacLean and a nurse practitioner due to his condition, which led to persistent complications with a colostomy bag, according to medical records obtained by the Globe and Mail,” the report said.
He also was depressed and had been involved in alcohol abuse, the report said.
MacLean met Dillon outside a Tim Hortons, and the man was put on a track for assisted suicide not because he was expected to die soon, but because the disease causes suffering.
The doctor later drove Dillon to a morgue to die.
The report said a second case accused MacLean of botching an assisted death by failing to administer a vital drug that paralyzes the body’s muscles, authorities said.
In that case, the patient started breathing, after being pronounced dead and after MacLean had left.
MacLeon’s defense included that he used his best judgment and tried to honor patients’ wishes.
The scandal has triggered a new surge of concern over the nation’s assisted suicide schemes, which have claimed tens of thousands of lives, including of patients who could have responded to ordinary medical treatments.
