Young people requesting medical aid in dying: ‘not now’ as a guiding principle

AI Summary

Adopt a 'not now' stance: take MAID requests seriously while pausing action to explore underlying needs and risks.
Prioritise slowing down and enduring the request: comprehensive assessment, careful exploration, and ongoing engagement with young person and relatives.
Ensure accessible, high quality, humane care and support for young people and relatives alongside MAID assessment processes.

Tijdschr Psychiatr. 2026;68(4):183-188.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: In recent years, a growing number of young people have requested medical aid in dying (MAID) on the basis of psychiatric suffering. This development has raised concern within the mental health care sector and has contributed to a broader societal debate.

AIM: To address the following question: what can mental health care professionals do in response to a MAID request from a young person?

METHOD: In this essay, a group of youth mental health experts examines the issue from multiple perspectives and formulates recommendations for a practical framework to support health care professionals who are confronted in clinical practice with a young person – and their relatives – requesting MAID.

RESULTS: MAID requests from young people based on psychiatric suffering are even more complex than those made by adults. We recommend that clinicians adopt a basic attitude of ‘not now’. This approach entails taking the wish for MAID seriously and exploring it carefully, without acting on it immediately. Instead, we advocate a strategy of slowing down and enduring.

CONCLUSION: In this essay, we present a ‘not now’ conceptual framework for responding to MAID requests from young people on the grounds of psychiatric suffering. In addition to this approach, it is essential that high-quality, accessible and humane care is available to young people making a MAID request, as well as to their relatives.

PMID:42170709

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