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Bernadette
came to her local LIFE House desperate for help. Fleeing domestic violence,
pregnant with her third child, and with nowhere else to turn, she didn’t think
it would be possible to over-come longstanding issues and repair her
relationship with her family.
Her Support Plan worked on building confidence
and self-esteem and together with her Support Worker, Bernadette developed a
valuable network of friends and family to ensure she was happy and safe when she
was ready to leave our care.
*not real name
Monday, 9th May 2011
"70% of people with disabilities opposed to assisted suicide", says SCOPE/ComRes survey
One of the first studies to look at the attitude of people with disabilities to assisted suicide has found that many are extremely concerned by the prospect of legalisation. An article in today's Telegraph quotes Richard Hawkes, chief executive of Scope, as saying:
“Assisted suicide is a complex and emotional issue, and there are loud and passionate voices on both sides of the debate. But while high profile lawyers, doctors and celebrities such as Terry Pratchett and Patrick Stewart grab the headlines, the views of the thousands of ordinary disabled people who could be affected by this issue are rarely listened to.
“Our survey findings confirm that concerns about legalising assisted suicide are not just held by a minority, but by a substantial majority of those this law would affect. Disabled people are already worried about people assuming their life isn't worth living or seeing them as a burden, and are genuinely concerned that a change in the law could increase pressure on them to end their life.”
Quite rightly, Mr Hawkes called for a proper government inquiry into the whole subject.