July 5, 2015
Court to rule on Nitschke’s suspension
The Supreme Court in Darwin is set to rule on whether the suspension of euthanasia campaigner Philip Nitschke’s medical licence is appropriate.
A court is set to rule on euthanasia campaigner Philip Nitschke’s ongoing fight to overturn his suspension by the Medical Board of Australia.
The board has accused Dr Nitschke of tacitly approving the suicide of Perth man Nigel Brayley, 45, who killed himself in May last year while he was under investigation for his involvement in the murder of his wife and the disappearance of a former girlfriend.
The doctor’s suspension was upheld by the Health Professional Review Tribunal but the Northern Territory Supreme Court will rule on Monday whether that was appropriate.
Dr Nitschke said the court’s ruling would essentially be a judgment on whether the medical board’s original decision to suspend him because he was a “danger to the Australian public” was lawful.
By its actions the board had asserted that “every doctor must act to prevent anyone, not just their patients, from suiciding”, he said.
In earlier hearings in Darwin, the Supreme Court was told Dr Nitschke met Mr Brayley at a workshop run by his organisation Exit International.
In later emails, Mr Brayley revealed he intended to take his own life.
The MBA accepted that Dr Nitschke did not have a doctor-patient relationship with Mr Brayley but argued he did not go far enough to assess the man’s health and condone his suicide.
But Dr Nitschke’s lawyer argued that a doctor could not compel a person to become their patient against their wishes, and said it would be an enormous burden for doctors if they were to be responsible for every negative health decision made by people they encountered.
Dr Nitschke is currently working in London on his show for the Edinburgh Fringe ‘Dicing with Dr Death‘.