Travelling to Dignitas for assisted death

Outsourcing assisted dying

It isn’t currently legal to help someone to die in the British Isles. As a result, many people travel to Switzerland to have an assisted death.

Hundreds of Britons have ended their lives at Dignitas, a not-for-profit organisation in Switzerland. By refusing to change the law, Parliament is ignoring the suffering dying people face.

The challenges of travelling abroad to die

Travelling abroad to die is not an easy decision. There are many challenges dying people have to face, as our report, The True Cost, shows.

1. The cost

The current law discriminates between rich and poor. The average cost to travel for an assisted death is around £15,000. This is unaffordable for most people. Many of the people we spoke to for our report said they felt privileged to be able to afford it, knowing that it was not an option for every dying person.

More than half of Brits (52%) would personally consider travelling to Switzerland for an assisted death if they were terminally ill, but less than 3 in 10 (28%) would be able to afford it. Find out more about public opinion on assisted dying.

2. The threat of prosecution

It is currently illegal in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to help someone to die. There is no specific crime of assisting a suicide in Scotland, but it is possible that helping a person to die could lead to prosecution. Our research has found that dying people often need the help of friends and family to make the arrangements for an assisted death.

I knew it was illegal. But there was part of me that was sort of, excuse my language, but fuck you. I had a choice, but she was my mum – I didn’t have a choice.
– Carmen

The majority of people we spoke to were clear that they were willing to break the law. The fact that assisted dying was illegal did not, and would not, stop them from helping their loved one to have the death they wanted. The threat of prosecution can leave dying people feeling anxious about how their decisions may affect their family and friends.

3. The loss of control over death and grief

Being able to make the journey to Switzerland requires a certain level of health, so there’s pressure to make the journey before becoming too ill to do so. This often means sacrificing quality time that people could enjoy if they were able to remain at home.

Following an assisted death, Swiss authorities must confirm that there has been no breach of the law. Police, a public attorney, and an independent doctor inspect the body of the person who has died, review the evidence provided by the organisation and, if necessary, interview the professionals and the loved ones who witnessed the death.

This interrupts the grieving process for friends and family. It can cut short the time they spend with the body of their loved one. And the presence of officials and the implication that their loved one’s deathbed has become a suspected crime scene is distressing.

Although there is comfort in knowing someone has ended their suffering, grief is made more complicated by the death happening in a foreign country. If a person dies overseas, bringing the body home for burial or cremation in the British Isles leads to the involvement of a coroner (or medical reviewer in Scotland). In the case of an assisted death in Switzerland, it is likely that this would lead to a criminal investigation into the actions of those who helped. As a result, all of the people we spoke to whose loved one had an assisted death said that a cremation took place in Switzerland, and that they collected their loved one’s ashes at a later date or couriered them back home.

The reality of having little choice but to have a cremation in Switzerland means that people are denied a traditional funeral service in their home country. This limits the funeral choices available and prevents people donating their bodies to medical science. It can also have severe consequences for people with religious beliefs that forbid cremation, another example of inequity created by the current law.

4. The difficult, painful journey

Many people travel hundreds of miles at a point where they are in great pain and distress. This takes a lot of planning and logistics, as well as energy.

For the people we spoke to, the most common concern was the loss of valuable time at the end of life. There was anger and frustration that people had to spend their final months and weeks dealing with bureaucracy instead of enjoying life.

She was very scared that time was running out, and that she wouldn’t be able to get to Switzerland. We just had to wait.
– David

Getting paperwork and navigating bureaucratic systems requires knowledge and skills. The lack of clarity in the law for healthcare professionals means getting medical records and reports can be challenging.

Arranging an assisted death has a negative impact on the mental and physical health of those involved. But, for many people, having the control and peace of mind of an assisted death is worth the pains of making it happen.

How things could be different

We believe assisted dying should be legal across the British Isles for terminally ill, mentally competent adults. A change in the law would mean that many dying people could avoid painful and undignified deaths, without the cost, pain, trauma, and risk of travelling to Switzerland.