Euthanasia in the Netherlands: experiences in a review committee

Since 1999 reported cases of euthanasia in The Netherlands are examined in five regional review committees. In these committees a lawyer, an ethicist and a medical doctor investigate whether the cases reported are in correspondence with the so-called criteria for careful practice. Issues to be investigated include the patient's suffering, the nature of the patient's request, the consultation by another doctor and the way in which the termination of life has been performed. Since April 2002 the judgment of the committees is final. This paper describes the working of the review committees. It also discusses the relevance of experiences in the committee for issues of social and public debate, such as the role of the consulting doctor, the relation between euthanasia and palliative care, and the place of patient autonomy.