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Palliative Care
World Palliative Care Day: “It's about reducing suffering, not ending life”
October 12, 2024 is World Hospice Palliative Care Day. To mark the occasion, the three Belgian palliative care federations in Wallonia, Brussels and Flanders have relaunched a national campaign to spread a more positive image of palliative care.
Medically Assisted Reproduction
Artificial reproduction: study reveals increased risk of congenital heart defects in children
According to a study published in the European Heart Journal (EHJ), children conceived by artificial procreation have a higher risk of congenital heart defects than those born of natural conception.
Illness & Disability
“To be or not to be”: actors with Down's Syndrome give a performance of Hamlet that challenges prejudices
“A luminous show that goes beyond the turmoil of Hamlet to bring to the stage an irrepressible thirst for life”. This is how the commentators on Musiq3 (RTBF) describe a play that made a stopover in Belgium at the...
Illness & Disability
UN criticises Belgium for ‘high rate’ of abortions linked to prenatal Down’s Syndrome tests
In its latest report, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities notes with ‘concern’ that the ‘negative perception of persons with disabilities’ in Belgian society contributes to the ‘high level of...
Embryo
Cryopreservation of embryos: Study highlights ethical issues involved in their preservation and inevitable destruction
According to a study published last June, the number of human embryos cryopreserved following artificial reproduction has reached a record level in the UK. Published in The New Bioethics, the study analysed data provided by the UK Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) between 1991 and 2019. The figures show...
Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide
Australia: Study highlights impact of euthanasia on palliative care
A study published in the journal BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care in May 2024 looked at the impact of euthanasia on palliative care in Victoria, where the practice has been decriminalised in 2017. The study was...
Medically Assisted Reproduction
Assisted reproduction: a study reveals a psychological impact on children born from gamete donation
A study published on 27 June 2024 in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology highlights the greater risk of children conceived using gamete donation developing mental health problems and encountering...
Illness & Disability
Belgium under the UN’s microscope regarding the rights of people with disabilities: between inclusion and the extinction of Down's syndrome
In August and September, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) will examine the situation of people with disabilities and their rights in Belgium. Among the issues that could be...
In the spotlight
All the newsNews
Extending euthanasia to include mental health conditions: will Canada have a change of heart?
Genetic modification of human embryos: a gateway to eugenics?
France: Will the government force through the euthanasia bill?
Bereavement leave in the event of euthanasia: will it be possible to change one’s mind?
Belgium – Proposed liberalisation of abortion laws: 12, 14 or 18 weeks – a scientific question or an ethical choice?
Belgium: care for people with disabilities under scrutiny from the UN
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