Friend Recounts Assisting Two Friends in End-of-Life Journeys at Dignitas

Mick Murray, aged 77, shared his experience of his best friend Bob’s death in 2015 at the Dignitas clinic in Switzerland. Mr. Murray, who resides in Matlock, Derbyshire, was present at his friend’s side, having assisted in organizing the journey for Bob to end his life. He stated, “I think that before you actually die, your last sense to go is your hearing, so I made a point of talking to Bob about all the mountains we climbed.” Slightly more than a year prior, Mr. Murray and Bob had also been at the clinic when Bob’s wife, Ann, traveled there in 2014 to end her life. In the United Kingdom, current legislation prohibits individuals from requesting medically assisted death. Mr. Murray is a strong advocate for the assisted dying bill, a proposed law that would grant certain terminally ill individuals the option of a medically assisted death. Members of Parliament are scheduled to cast their initial votes on this bill on Friday. Regarding his friends Bob and Ann, Mr. Murray commented, “I helped them out of compassion, and I think this is one of the things that is missing a bit from this current debate.” Ann, who was 68, and her husband resided in North Wales and had been married for many years when she received a diagnosis of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a condition characterized by falls and a progressive decline in mobility. Mr. Murray described Ann’s condition, stating, “It’s a horrible illness, and towards the end of her life she was unable to do anything for herself. She had to be fed, toileted and washed, but her mind was still working.” Ann journeyed to Dignitas in February 2014, where she died “peacefully with her husband alongside her and a group of friends that travelled there,” as recounted by Mr. Murray. One year subsequently, Bob, described as an “active mountaineer and climber,” received a diagnosis of an aggressive type of mesothelioma, a cancer impacting the lining of the lungs. Mr. Murray remarked, “Bob was on morphine, so much morphine it should have killed a horse.” Mr. Murray further stated, “He decided also that he would go to Dignitas, and we went there barely a year and a little bit after his wife had been there.” Recalling his friend’s passing, Mr. Murray mentioned, “Bob decided that he would have Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Ode to Joy blasting out.” He continued, “It was trying to celebrate his life as best we could, it would have been even nicer if we’d been in England in his house at home.” Both Bob and Ann had expressed a desire to die at home, surrounded by friends at a party, potentially with red wine. Mr. Murray noted, “This avenue wasn’t possible for them.” He concluded, “I thought it was the most humane thing that they could have done, given that both of them were beyond palliative care.” Opponents of the assisted dying bill express concerns that its implementation could lead to elderly and vulnerable patients experiencing coercion to end their lives. These critics caution that individuals might be pressured into ending their lives and have called upon the government to prioritize enhancements in palliative care. Baroness Grey-Thompson, a Paralympian and crossbencher in the House of Lords, is a prominent critic. She previously informed the BBC of her apprehension regarding “the impact on vulnerable people, on disabled people, [the risk of] coercive control, and the ability of doctors to make a six-month diagnosis.” Liz Carr, an actor and disability rights activist who produced the BBC One documentary *Better Off Dead?*, also stands against altering the law. She conveyed on X, “Some of us have very real fears based on our lived experience and based on what has happened in other countries where it’s legal.” Dr. Gordon Macdonald, chief executive of the campaign group Care Not Killing, stated, “This bill is being rushed with indecent haste and ignores the deep-seated problems in the UK’s broken and patchy palliative care system.” Dr. Bill Noble, a retired consultant in palliative medicine, commented, “I think it should be an entirely legal process; it should be something like a civil matter, like divorce or adoption or powers of attorney or marriage.” He further elaborated, “It’s something you choose in your life, which is a much wider question than simply a medical one, and, I think, if it is to be brought about, it needs to be a rigorous process to ensure that people are not doing it for the wrong reason, the wrong reasons being coercion by family, it’s rare but it happens, I’ve seen it.” For updates, follow BBC Derby on Facebook, X, or Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or through WhatsApp at 0808 100 2210. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.