Alzheimer Society supports advance MAID requests, but also good dementia care [Video]

The Alzheimer Society says people with dementia should have the right to request medical assistance in dying in advance — but it must not be a replacement for high-quality palliative care.

As of today, people with dementia in Quebec are allowed to make advance requests for MAID, before they lose the capacity to provide informed consent.

Alzheimer Society of Ontario CEO Cathy Barrick says advance requests in the rest of Canada would allow people with dementia to have the same legal rights as others with fatal conditions when it comes to making decisions around end-of-life care.

But Barrick says it’s important to make sure patients also have the option to receive dementia-specific, comprehensive palliative care.

She says the challenge with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia is that it’s hard for someone to predict how they will feel at a later point in time as their disease progresses.

Barrick …