Since 2016, medical assistance in dying (MAID) has been legal in Canada. The passage of federal legislation governing MAID established the right of eligible Canadians to consent to and participate in an assisted death. However, the legal requirements around consent also created challenges for individuals with communication disorders. To address these challenges, speech-language pathologists (S-LPs) in some jurisdictions began providing communication support to MAID practitioners during MAID assessments and provisions.
On March 17, 2021, Canada’s MAID legislation saw several amendments. These resulted in changes to the eligibility criteria for MAID, MAID’s procedural safeguards and its final consent requirements.
While the role of S-LPs in MAID is now better established, this 2021 legislative change stands to affect the way that S-LPs work with MAID patients and practitioners in Canada. This presentation reviews changes to the Canadian MAID legislation, outlines practical effects of these changes on how MAID patients can now provide consent and discusses ways in which these are likely to impact S-LPs’ role in MAID going forward.
This session pertains to
- School Aged (5-17)
- Adult (18-64)
- Seniors (65+)
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