Rossiter Case Not Isolated, Says Nurses Union Boss

Rossiter case not isolated, says nurses union boss, Aug. 17, 2009.

Nurses union boss Mark Olson has welcomed a Supreme Court ruling which could allow a quadriplegic nursing home patient to starve himself to death, claiming WA nurses have long helped patients to die in this way without court approval.

Mr Olson, WA secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation, claimed some nurses had compassionately helped patients starve but were then left fearing the legal ramifications for doing so.

He would not reveal details of the cases to the media or the authorities in order to keep secret the identity of the nurses involved.

But he said the landmark ruling on Friday clarified the law and protected his members from being held criminally responsible for a patient's death in such a situation.

"It's something that happens more frequently than the general public realise, though it doesn't happen regularly, and to have (the law) clarified makes sense," Mr Olson said.

"They (nurses) are always concerned (when they are involved in withholding food and water from patients who cannot feed themselves). They are concerned about relatives making complaints - they may complain to the medical facility or to the medical board.

"And then there's always the possibility, a worst case scenario, of being charged.

"Nurses have the same level of concern as anyone else would have, but the law is not clear."

Mr Rossiter said after the ruling that he could still be dissuaded from ending his life.

Brightwater had said it did not have an opinion on whether it should comply, but had gone to court to ensure it would not be penalised if it did so.

Mr Rossiter's case has sparked a backlash from right-to-life groups because he is not terminally ill.

Attorney-General Christian Porter said yesterday he was not concerned by suggestions the ruling could prompt a flood of similar cases, saying the law had not changed.

He said all the decision had done was confirm that feeding through a tube was a medical procedure and could be removed legally at a patient's request.

In his decision, Chief Justice Wayne Martin emphasised that the case was not about euthanasia or doctors providing lethal treatment to patients who wished to die. It was about the legal obligations of a care service when a mentally sound patient said he did not wish to receive medical services which, if discontinued, would lead to his death.

The Supreme Court ruled that Christian Rossiter's nursing home, run by the Brightwater Care Group, must cease feeding him through a tube if that was what he wanted, as long as the consequences had been fully explained.

By Kim MacDonald and Tiffany Fox, The West Australian