NPR’s Morning Edition Covers the Organ Procurement Debate

June 24, 2013bioethics, donation after cardiac death, national catholic partnership on disability, OPTN, Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, organ transplants, Our News & Commentary Blog, Rob Stein, Stephen MikochikDiane Coleman

…ion should be raised with patients or their families. The guidelines say local hospitals and organ procurement organizations should decide individually how to handle that question. “I’m worried about it,” says Dr. Stuart Youngner, a bioethicist at Case Western Reserve University, noting that there’s long been a clear line between the decision to discontinue care and to donate organs. “From the beginning the organ transplantation establishment has…

Press Release: Disability Group Urges Institute of Medicine (IOM) to Remedy “Glaring Omission” in Membership on End-of-Life Committee

January 30, 2013end-of-life care, Institute of Medicine, ira byock, Kelly Buckland, national council on independent living, Our News & Commentary Blog, press releaseStephen Drake

…cently formed Committee on Transforming End-of-Life Care to remedy what it called “glaring omissions.” The group recommended Kelly Buckland, Executive Director of the National Council on Independent Living, and Dr. Ira Byock, Director of Palliative Medicine at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. Rochester, NY (PRWEB) January 30, 2013 On Tuesday, January 29, 2013, Not Dead Yet submitted recommendations that two new members be appointed to the Insti…

UK: ‘Locked-In’ Tony Nicklinson Loses Court Bid for Euthanasia; Second Thoughts and NDY in Coverage

August 17, 2012court decisions, diane coleman, euthanasia, john kelly, media, Our News & Commentary Blog, Second ThoughtsStephen Drake

…else be able to legally kill him when he’s ‘ready.’ That’s not a hypothetical person, but describes Tony Nicklinson, who is getting worldwide coverage regarding his wish to have a doctor be able to kill him with a legal injection sometime in the future. The public, of course, eats this up. It’s so much easier to get behind the desire of a disabled person to kill himself than it is to support the needs of thousands of people who may require more o…

Followup – DutchNews.nl Corrects Errors in Euthanasia Story While Associated Press Ignores Its Errors

November 21, 2011assisted suicide, Associated Press, corrections, DutchNews.nl, euthanasia, journalistic ethics, media issues, misinformation, Netherlands, Our News & Commentary BlogStephen Drake

…Statement of News Values and Principles, and it takes a strong strong, ethical stance on dealing with errors: CORRECTIONS/CORRECTIVES: Staffers must notify supervisory editors as soon as possible of errors or potential errors, whether in their work or that of a colleague. Every effort should be made to contact the staffer and his or her supervisor before a correction is moved. When we’re wrong, we must say so as soon as possible. When we make a co…

Diane Coleman Counters Support for Assisted Suicide with Reality Check in Her Hometown Paper

October 26, 2011assisted suicide, kalamazoo, Kevorkian, margaret dore, media coverage, michigan, Our News & Commentary BlogStephen Drake

…e publishing on the blog is entirely my responsibility. –SD) I grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan, so when the Kalamazoo Gazette’s October 1st edition featured three opinion pieces supporting assisted suicide, I had to respond. The authors were three senior high school students who are members of the paper’s 24-member Young Editorial Staff (YES). The paper noted that the students pick their own discussion topics and the views expressed are solely thos…