Mr Rob McHawk1, Dr Kristin Good2
1Ministry of Health, 2Ministry of Health
The New Zealand End of Life Choice Act (The Act) came into force on 7 November 2021 following the outcome of the 2021 New Zealand referendum. The New Zealand Ministry of Health, who is responsible for administering the Act, had 12 months to deliver a functional assisted dying service that was safe, equitable, and available to all New Zealanders from day one.
This presentation will give a brief outline of the implementation of the legislation, how the assisted dying service operates, data and insights including feedback and complaints, the challenges and lessons learnt in the first 12 months of service operation. The presentation will also explore the ethical tensions that exist under the Act, with other regulations that practitioners work under, prognosis and the use of technology in assessing competence and coercion during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The presenters are two senior leaders within the service who worked on the implementation of the Act and now work within the assisted dying secretariat.
Biography:
Rob McHawk is a Registered Nurse and Manager of the Regulatory Assurance team at the Ministry of Health New Zealand. Within this role he is responsible for the team who regulates and monitors the End-of-Life Choice Act 2019 (to include the Assisted Dying Service), the abortion and sterilisation sections of the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion Act 1977 and the relevant sections related to quality assurance activities and responsible authority reviews within the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. Previously he has held the position of Manager, Ethics within the Ministry of Health, and he has held senior nursing leadership roles within the Perioperative setting at both Auckland and Middlemore Hospitals. Rob is currently completing his PhD, with a focus on the implementation of evidence-based practice.
Dr Kristin Good is Chief Clinical Advisor at the Ministry of Health NZ and within that role, the Registrar of Assisted Dying, a statutory position under the Act. She joined the Ministry in 2021 for the implementation of the End of Life Choice Act. She has held senior leadership positions in a range of health care organisations, including Director of Primary Care at Auckland District Health Board, Clinical Director at primary health organisations, Clinical Director of Healthline’s COVID response and holds other governance roles at board level. She is a Distinguished Fellow of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practice and is a staunch advocate for patient choice.