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ARCHIVED - Alicante hospital becomes first in Valencia region to perform voluntary euthanasia
The first patient allowed assistance to end their life in Alicante province was a woman in her sixties with multiple sclerosis
A woman in her sixties, who suffered with multiple sclerosis for more than 20 years, has become the first patient permitted to receive assistance in ending their own lives in the Valencia region, a procedure which has been carried out at Alicante's San Juan Hospital.
While this is the first procedure carried out in the region since the Euthanisia law came into force in Spain in June of this year, it's believed to be the third in the country, though this is difficult to confirm as the procedure is kept private unless families decide to share the information.
In the latest case, the woman, who lived in an assisted residence in Alicante, had reportedly reached a very advanced stage of multiple sclerosis and was advised and accompanied by the Right to Die Association throughout the process.
According to its president, Marisa Velasco, the widow with no family had expressed an interest in assisted suicide "from the moment the law was approved".
Velasco, a doctor and professor in palliative care at Alicante University for 17 years, says the deceased "felt lonely", even though she was in a residential centre, and explains that "when you know firsthand the suffering of people, you realise that there are lives that do not deserve to be lived, as long as the person feels that way themselves".
It's not clear exactly when the assisted death was carried out, but the deceased woman left a note for Velasco, which read: "Marisa, thank you very much. I owe you, you have supported me a lot. Tomorrow, finally, I am going to die and I am going to get my wish to disappear”.
The Right to Die Association believes the first practice of euthanasia in the Valencia region will pave the way for further requests, but believes "training health workers to deal with these situations is not happening quickly enough".
IMAGE: Archive