Quand accompagnement de fin de vie rime avec assistance au suicide : l’expérience des proches en Suisse latine

• Main Authors: Murielle Pott, Laeticia Stauffer, Claudia Gamondi
• Format: Article
• Language: fra
• Published: Association Anthropologie Médicale Appliquée au Développement et à la Santé 2015-05-01
• Series: Anthropologie & Santé
• Subjects: assisted suicide; relatives; illness trajectory; end-of-life assistance; negotiations
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/anthropologiesante/1704

In Switzerland, assisted suicide is mainly accessible to the members of right-to-die organizations and its practice has increased in a specific legal context. The way the relatives are involved in this helping-to-die process is widely unknown. This article analyzes this singular end-of-life assistance and care, which takes place through a process where illness trajectories have to be reconciled with the standard procedure for assisted suicide. We highlight how the relatives are involved in a large range of emotional and instrumental activities in their daily lives: they are empathetic toward suffering, care, help get medical certificates, negotiate the day of the death and the choice of people to be informed about this decision.