October 26, 2015
Nitschke may give up Medical Registration
Euthanasia campaigner Philip Nitschke may consider giving up his medical registration after being forced to agree with a “gun to his head” to stop providing suicide and euthanasia advice.
The Medical Board of Australia on Monday imposed 25 strict conditions on Dr Nitschke in a mediated settlement that will require he practise only in the Northern Territory and under the indirect supervision of a board-appointed supervisor for two years.
The conditions also state that he will not provide advice, information or encouragement on suicide or the euthanasia drug Nembutal.
Dr Nitschke’s wife Fiona Stewart said the conditions amounted to a “gag order” and her husband had little choice but to accept them.
He’s already spent $250,000 fighting to keep his medical registration and he couldn’t afford to pay for upcoming tribunal hearings that were scheduled for November.
“He really had a gun to his head,” Dr Stewart told AAP.
“It’s another example of the medical profession trying to stifle debate on this very important, cutting-edge social issue.
“The ramifications of this really mean that no Australian doctor can talk about voluntary euthanasia or assisted suicide to any member of the public or any patient.”
Dr Stewart, a public health sociologist, said she will take over as director of Exit International until members of the organisation have their say on the conditions Dr Nitschke has agreed to.
If members decide they want him to continue his work with Exit as an unregistered medical doctor, he will consider resigning his registration on his own terms, she said.
“It’s not the Medical Board of Australia’s decision, based on some spurious, trumped-up charges just because they don’t like his political views,” she said.
“He’s not about to see 20 years’ work thrown out.
“If their goal was to try and shut Exit down, they’ve failed miserably.”
Dr Stewart said 85 per cent of Australians wanted to see reform on euthanasia.
Dr Nitschke’s medical registration was suspended in 2014, but the decision was overturned by the Northern Territory Supreme Court in July after the suspension was found to be unlawful.
But the Medical Board referred a further 12 complaints to the NT Medical Tribunal, which were set to be heard in November.
In a statement, Dr Nitschke said he reached agreement with the Medical Board to resolve what would have been four to six weeks of “costly” tribunal hearings.