Dying with Dignity Victoria – Christians Supporting Choice for Voluntary Assisted Dying

Annual Newsletter and Update April 2025

Ian Wood — Fri, 25 Apr 2025 06:22:09 +0000

Dear Members and Friends,
The Victorian VAD legislation has now been
operating for five years, and the report which came
out made several suggestions for improvement
which have been well received and are likely to be
legislated.
The Australian Capital Territory passed their
legislation in August, and it will be available from 3
November, this year. The Chief Minister of the
Northern Territory has stated that VAD “is not a
priority”, despite an independent advisory panel
finding that 71% of the NT community are in favour.
A recently elected Independent MP, Justine Davis is
hoping to introduce a Private Member’s Bill. I have
made her aware of our website and the Christian
support for VAD.
My letter to the Northern Territory News was
published on 26 September.
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has
published its Position Statement on VAD 2025. The
introduction very encouragingly states: “Doctors
have an ethical duty to provide their patients with
quality end-of-life care that strives to alleviate pain
and suffering, supports an individual’s values and
preferences for care, and allows them to achieve
the best quality of life possible. This position
statement serves to support doctors and patients
who choose to participate, and those who choose
not to participate, in Voluntary Assisted Dying
services, where legally available in Australia.” Go
to their website: www.ama.com.au if you want to
read more.

Telehealth consultations continue to be illegal.
Contact your incoming Federal MPs and ask them
to push for a change to restrictions on Telehealth for
VAD which continue to disadvantage people in
remote rural areas and those unable to travel to
appointments. The AMA has also asked the
Government to act on this issue. Lack of Medicare
benefits for VAD also disadvantages poorer
patients, but this is at last starting to be addressed.
Go Gentle Australia has recently released a paper
about the burning issue of Dementia and VAD that it
commissioned Dr Kylie Ladd to research. GGA
Dementia Paper. Go to their website
www.gogentleaustralia.org.au if the above link
doesn’t work.

Awareness – Doctors in Victoria and South Australia
are still not allowed to mention VAD to patients, but
a recent survey in Queensland has shown that many
people are not aware that VAD is now a legal option.
In conjunction with U3A Southern Highlands, DWD
NSW and a local Death Doula, I was pleased to give
a short talk about our group. The vital importance of
preparing an Advance Care Directive (ACD) and
nominating an Enduring Guardian was also
mentioned. Maybe you are involved in a group
which could host a guest speaker from the DWD
organisation in your state.

Go Gentle Australia organised a conference of all
the DWD Organisations in Australia and New
Zealand (VADANZ) in Brisbane late October, which
was well attended.

The President of DWD Victoria, Jane Morris
announced at that conference that DWDV
awarded me the Rodney Syme Medal for 2024.
This Medal recognises distinguished effort in
pursuit of the Dying with Dignity cause. I was very
honoured to receive this award which recognises our
group’s significant input to the VAD campaign.
We continue to regularly receive requests for
information via our website.

Overseas.
The Isle of Man was the first jurisdiction in the UK to
pass an Assisted Dying Bill in late March, and it has
been forwarded for Royal Assent. There was an
historic win in the House of Commons at the Second
Reading of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill
in November 2024. Their Committee stage has just
completed, during which they studied the Australian
and New Zealand VAD models. It is now due to go
back to the Commons for debate. There has been
the predictable opposition by religious groups.
Debate is continuing in Scotland and Jersey.

MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying) in Canada
continues to provide a painfree and peaceful
compassionate end of life choice and Quebec has
recently allowed access to MAiD by people suffering
from Dementia via an Advance Request. This is
creating controversy, but highlights this vitally
important unresolved issue.
Countries currently allowing Assisted Dying:
Australia (excluding the Northern Territory), Austria,
Belgium, Canada, Germany, Luxembourg, Portugal,
Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands, USA
(California, Colorado, the District of Columbia,
Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, New Zealand, Oregon,
Vermont, and Washington. Montana’s Court has
ruled that Assisted Dying is permissable, but the
State has not legislated for it.
The constitutional courts of Colombia, Ecuador and
Italy have legalised Assisted Dying, but their
governments have not yet legislated or regulated
the practice.

Donations: Donations are gratefully received and
can still be made by direct deposit to Christians for
VE – BSB: 105003 A/C: 119890940.

Sadly, many Church hierarchies continue to be vocal
in their opposition. Because of this continued
opposition and the need to have the laws passed in
the Northern Territory, it is hoped that you will
continue to be a member of our group. Please
contact me if you have any questions.
Best wishes,

Ian

Ian Wood receives 2024 Rodney Syme Medal

Ian Wood — Mon, 04 Nov 2024 23:53:37 +0000

Jane Morris, President of Dying With Dignity Victoria, when announcing Ian’s award at the dinner of the Trans-Tasman Voluntary Assisted Dying Conference on Monday 28 October, 2024, stated :“There would be very few people who have not heard of Dr. Rodney Syme. Rodney spent the latter part of his life selflessly and totally committed to ensuring the successful passage of VAD legislation in Victoria. Since 2007, DWDV has awarded The Rodney Syme Medal in recognition of the outstanding and distinguished effort by an individual/s in pursuit of the Dying with Dignity cause. Dying With Dignity Victoria is delighted to award the 2024 Rodney Syme Medal to Ian Wood, Co-Founder of Christians Supporting Choice for Voluntary Assisted Dying.

For the past 20 years, Ian has worked tirelessly, advocating for Voluntary Assisted Dying as an additional, compassionate end-of-life choice from the aspect of Christian support.

Congratulations Ian, and wholehearted thanks from all of us at Dying With Dignity Victoria for your invaluable efforts.”

After being presented with the Rodney Syme Medal by Michelle Hindson Board Member of Dying With Dignity Victoria, Ian responded:

“I’m delighted to accept this, and I do sincerely thank Jane Morris and DWD Victoria for presenting me with this Rodney Syme Award. Rodney was actually the person who I considered as one of the dozens and perhaps hundreds of people who have both mentored me and motivated me in my efforts to counter the mainly religious lobby who sought to impose their outdated views on all Australians.

I have really thought that Voluntary Assisted Dying should be a basic human right. We are Christians who believe that, as a demonstration of love and compassion, those who are terminally or hopelessly ill should have the option of a pain free, peaceful and dignified death with Voluntary Assisted Dying.

Thank you to Frances Coombe, President of VADSA, who back in 2008 spoke to me and my colleague, Reverend Trevor Bensch and suggested that we co-found our group; and I would also like to thank Reverend Dr Craig de Vos for his continued support of our

group as Patron. Thank you.”

A Completed Life – Dr Rodney Syme

Ian Wood — Fri, 23 Feb 2024 06:07:05 +0000

This book presents Dr Syme’s views on the plight of people with dementia, and his suggestion for further legislative change. The book’s title reflects a life that has been long, and where all that was possible has been achieved – and so is in a sense ‘complete’. There follows consideration of the problems that may follow, and what may be a reasonable response.

I was privileged to be one of the people asked to review this book prior to publication and I can thoroughly recommend it.

You can order your copy from https://www.dwdv.org.au/store/a-completed-life-paperback/

Ian Wood

Bowral, NSW

Excellent news from Victoria with the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill passing the upper house, with amendments, by 22 votes to 18

Ian Wood — Wed, 22 Nov 2017 09:59:47 +0000

Yes, it is excellent news from Victoria with the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill passing the upper house, with amendments, by 22 votes to 18. It now goes back to the lower house to see if they will vote to accept the amendments and pass the Bill, so just one more hurdle to cross there!

Sincere thanks to Dying With Dignity Victoria and the team, Andrew Denton and the Go Gentle Australia/Stop Victorians Suffering team for your unstinting efforts and to every MP who voted for compassionate choice.

Shame that we failed by one vote in our NSW upper house a week earlier.

Ian Wood on behalf of all the members Australia-wide of Christians Supporting Choice for Voluntary Euthanasia group.

VCAT rules in favour of Dr Rodney Syme

Ian Wood — Thu, 22 Dec 2016 08:25:37 +0000

I am delighted with the news from DWDV (Dying with Dignity Victoria). Here is the item direct from their website. VCAT is the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Dr Rodney Syme is a person of great compassion and a doctor with true empathy for his patients. Post by Ian Wood.

http://www.dwdv.org.au/news/vcat-rules-in-favour-of-dr-rodney-syme

DWDV Vice President, Dr Rodney Syme, cleared by VCAT

21 December, 2016

Dying With Dignity Victoria are delighted by the recent ruling in Dr Rodney Syme’s VCAT case, where he fought against a condition placed on his medical license by the Medical Board of Australia in relation to counselling that he was providing to a Victorian man.

From the final report:

“Dr Syme’s practise is limited to advising and assisting patients who are in the final stages of terminal illness and to whom a sense of control over their dying is important. His patients seek him out. He does not advertise for patients.

He therefore has contact only with those patients who self-identify as being part of a cohort for whom traditional palliative care options may not be acceptable. Having been contacted by them, he assists only those whom he is satisfied are in a sound state of mind and whose death from their disease is inevitable or whose disease has progressed to the extent that their lives have become intolerable to them.

It is widely accepted in palliative medicine that, consistent with this clause, doses of medicine may be given to patients to relieve their pain and suffering even though it is foreseeable and indeed inevitable that those doses will also have the effect of hastening the patient’s death. The use of morphine and sedatives for this purpose is widely accepted and meets the needs of many patients. However, not all patients wish to receive that form of palliative care because of the loss of dignity, control and comfort which can be associated with it.”

The final report on the case released by VCAT is an interesting read, frankly detailing the work that Dr Syme does in counselling people who are suffering from terminal or advanced incurable illnesses as they near the end of their lives.

In determining that Dr Syme’s practises and counselling are intended to relieve suffering and not primarily aimed at ending a person’s life, VCAT has ultimately found that Dr Syme’s practises are not a risk or a danger to the community. They cited his knowledge of palliative care, his extensive experience in counselling people who are irremediably suffering at the end of their lives and the professional manner in which he has conducted his counselling.

Read the full report by clicking here