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You may have heard the cry from the heart of Valérie Daigle, mother of Grégory, who died in Quebec this summer at the age of 11. She denounced the conditions under which he died.

Grégory lived with cerebral palsy and hydrocephalus. He was a happy boy living with a loving family. During an operation last June, he contracted a bacterium and his condition rapidly deteriorated. Two weeks later, he had to receive comfort care.

Here is the story of the end of his life, as reported by Radio-Canada (in French, our translation).

“For seven weeks, his loved ones stayed at Grégory’s bedside as he went through a long period of agony. (…) She (his mother) would have hoped for an earlier, gentle departure. Holding his hand, surrounded by his loved ones, while a doctor administered the injection that would quickly put him out of his misery. The Canadian law on medical assistance in dying does not allow this. She wants an amendment with extremely clear guidelines. ‘I don’t want a child to die because he’s disabled. My little fellow has had an extraordinary life over the last 11 years, despite his differences and his limitations. However, there comes a time when the limit is reached and these children no longer have any quality of life and suffer a great deal. That’s when we have to consider the option.”

On this issue, On this issue, even the Association québécoise pour le droit de mourir dans la dignité (Quebec Association for the Right to Die with Dignity) is opposed to such a broadening of the law .

In response to Grégory’s end of life, the right thing to do is not to open the door to substituted consents allowing MAiD for children and/or people incapable of giving consent. We are convinced that better access to quality paediatric palliative care must be promoted throughout Quebec.

Faced with these difficult ethical debates, we sincerely acknowledge Ms Daigle’s suffering and would like to offer our condolences to all of Grégory’s family and friends.