Johan Legemaate

Integrating health law and health policy: a European perspective

Health law is intended to create an environment in which the promotion of health goes hand in hand with the protection of individual rights and the general principles of equality and justice. Over the years, the importance of health law has grown, both at national and international level. As health and human rights are closely interlinked, it is important to integrate health law and health policy. It is to be expected that, especially in Europe, the impact of health law on health policy-making will increase as a result of several developments, e.g. the internationalization of health care and health policy, the issue of consumer protection and the legalization of society. This requires a strategy to stimulate the fruitful relationship between health policy and health law. The most important components of this strategy are discussed.

Physician Assisted Suicide in Psychiatry: An Analysis of Case Law and Professional Opinions

For more than two decades euthanasia and assisted suicide have been openly debated in the Netherlands. One issue that has raised considerable debate over the last few years is the acceptability of physician assisted suicide in psychiatry. In Dutch medical practice these cases are very rare. In a survey carried out in 1996 amongst half of the Dutch psychiatrists 37% of the respondents indicated that they had at least once received an explicit, persistent request for physician assisted suicide. Twelve respondents had complied. The researchers estimate that there are 320 requests a year in psychiatric practice and two to five assisted suicides. Nevertheless, the issue of physician assisted suicide in psychiatry has attracted much attention, partly because of a number of recent court decisions. However, interest is certainly also related to the fact that the issue raises fundamental questions concerning the limits of euthanasia and assisted suicide.