‘Protect the vulnerable’
In early 2016, a Victorian man with advanced tongue cancer was offered Nembutal (illegal lethal tablets) by euthanasia-promoting doctor, Dr Rodney Syme.
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The patient’s GP complained and the Medical Board of Victoria put a ban on Dr Syme from practising end-of-life patient care – describing him as a “serious risk”.
Dr Syme appealed to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) which has reversed the ban.
Why? Assisting a patient to commit suicide is against the law in Victoria and carries a five-year prison sentence.
That is an excellent law, designed to protect vulnerable people from falling into the hands of the euthanasia types -- while, hopefully, accessing care from proper palliative care doctors.
The Victorian government plans to reverse that law -- a bad move which would endanger the frail, the despairing, the weak and the elderly.
Arnold Jago
‘Little things help’
I just wanted to say thanks very much for keeping the community up to date on the little things. It makes such a difference to have someone like the newspaper keeping their ear to the ground, pulling together everything from all kinds of different sources, and letting us know what’s going on.
For instance, the other day I was just about to leave for a quick swim at the pool in Moss Vale. Getting the kids ready and getting out there is a big effort if you don’t live close by. Thanks to a quick check on Facebook, I found out the pool was temporarily closed! Big help! It would have been a wasted 40 minute round trip otherwise (not to mention grumpy kids).
We can’t follow every Facebook page and check every website so we’re glad the newspaper can pull all those threads together. They may seem like little things to some people, but it’s just one of the ways a newspaper helps its community. So thanks!
Sharon Jones
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