Nova Scotia Health resumes referrals for medical assistance in dying

Nova Scotia Health is resuming referrals to medical assistance in dyingafter a three-week pause.

The health authority halted new referrals to the service on Sept. 29 so it could work through a backlog of requests. The hiatus was expected to last for a month,but applications are once again being accepted.

Nova Scotia Health cited an increase in demand, a lack of clinicians to carry out MAID procedures and assessmentsand theongoing strain on the health-care system due to the COVID-19 pandemic as reasons for the backlog.

Several new assessors have come forward and the health authority is in the process of hiring a new, full-time nurse practitioner to work with the program, Nova Scotia Health said in a news release.

The program is still seeking more clinicians to become involved, said the medical director of the program, Dr. Gord Gubitz, in the news release.

Medical assistance in dying became legal in Canada in June 2016.

Last year,373 people were referred to the program in Nova Scotia.As ofSeptember, the health authority hadreceived 395 referrals for this year.