B.C. judge halts Alberta woman’s MAID one day before procedure

An Alberta woman who came to B.C. for medical assistance in dying (MAID) had the procedure blocked by a B.C. Supreme Court judge just before it was set to take place.

A notice of civil claim alleges the B.C. doctor’s approval of the MAID procedure did not meet the legal criteria.

According to the documents, the woman, who cannot be named, has a diagnosed history of bipolar disorder and believes she has a condition called akathisia, which is an inability to remain still.

The documents state that when her MAID application was turned down by a medical team in Alberta, she contacted B.C. Dr. Ellen Wiebe, a well-known assisted dying advocate.

Following some consultations, the woman travelled to Vancouver last week for MAID to be performed by Wiebe.

However, on Saturday, one day before the scheduled procedure, the woman’s spouse was granted an injunction to stop it.

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The claim alleges that Wiebe did not speak with the woman’s doctors directly but asked her to obtain her own medical records and send them to her.

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It also says the woman’s doctor and psychiatrist believed that MAID was very premature and that she had not reasonably exhausted all treatment options.

A clinical psychiatrist told Global News that akathisia is treatable and should not be grounds for MAID.

“MAID is not legal in Canada for mental disorders yet,” Dr. Randall White, a faculty member in the UBC Department of Psychiatry, said

“We can almost always offer some relief and help people get past their suicidal thoughts. So I don’t think that MAID really needs to be considered in patients with mental illness. I think there’s always hope that they can get better.”

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Neither the patient nor Wiebe have logged a counterclaim.

Global News reached out to Wiebe for an interview but she responded with “no comment.”

Other MAID advocates have also declined to comment, saying this matter is now before the court.