Bishop Helen-Ann is currently taking part in the 13-member House of Lords Select Committee, taking evidence on the safeguarding and procedures in the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.
By the end of the committee, Bishop Helen-Ann will have taken part in six public meetings and the group will report back no later than 7 November, when the Bill will then progress to the next stage.
First Public Meeting: Wednesday 22 October
Given that the policy intent of the Bill's sponsors is to integrate assisted dying with palliative care, Bishop Helen-Ann asks whether the Royal College of Nursing is right to be worried that assisted dying and palliative care may become muddled.
Second Public Meeting: Thursday 23 October
Bishop Helen-Ann asks whether the panel have concerns about particular populations in relation to the Bill and also how the Bill might impact wider suicide prevention efforts.
Third Public Meeting: Wednesday 29 October
With 43% of palliative care staff saying they would leave their role if their organisation began offering assisted dying, Bishop Helen-Ann asks why so many might feel this way and what concerns the panel has about assisted dying taking place in hospice and palliative care settings.
Bishop Helen-Ann recognises that palliative care experiences can be quite unequal and asks whether the panel are concerned that inequalities could be worsened if this Bill is passed.
Fourth Public Meeting: Thursday 30 October
In light of widespread experiences of discrimination in healthcare, particularly for thos who are disabled or with learning disabilities, Bishop Helen-Ann asks whether the panel of witnesses have concerns about doctors being able to raise assisted dying with patients.
Fifth Public Meeting: Wednesday 5 November am
As the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and others have highlighted, Bishop Helen-Ann notes the importance of ensuring that pharmacists who hold a conscientious objection are protected under the Bill. She also seeks clarity on the efectiveness of the device planning to be used.
Sixth Public Meeting: Wednesday 5 November pm
In this final public meeting, Bishop Helen-Ann raised potential issues with the Bill in the private sector, asked whether vulnerable groups such as prison populations might be disproportionally impacted by the Bill and welcomed witnesses from New Zealand who talk about their experiences of the End of Life Choice Act (2019).