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The media in the Netherlands has reported today that the number of euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands in 2011 increased by 18% to 3695 and there were 13 reported psychiatric patients who died by euthanasia, up from 2 reported psychiatric euthanasia deaths in 2010.

Euthanasia for psychiatric patients in the Netherlands will likely increase substantially over the next few years in response to a Dutch article published last year in the Journal of Psychiatry advocating for the expansion of euthanasia for psychiatric patients.

As bad as these statistics may seem they only tell part of the story.

On July 11, 2012, The Lancet published the long awaited meta-analysis study concerning the practice of euthanasia and end-of-life practices in the Netherlands in 2010 with a comparison to the previous studies that were done in 2005, 2001, 1995 and 1990.

The Lancet study indicated that in 2010, 23% of all euthanasia deaths were not reported. The Lancet study found that there were 3136 reported euthanasia deaths in 2010, but there were actually 3859 euthanasia deaths and 192 assisted suicide deaths that year.

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Since 23% of all euthanasia deaths are not reported in the Netherlands, we can estimate that in 2011, the number of actual euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands was more likely (3695 + 23%) 4544.

Assisted suicide deaths are a separate catagory that are not counted within the official euthanasia statistics in the Netherlands. Since there were 192 assisted suicide deaths in the Netherlands in 2010 and since the number of euthanasia deaths increased by 18% in 2011, therefore it is likely that there were (192 + 18%) 226 assisted suicide deaths in 2011.

Therefore the total number of assisted deaths in the Netherlands in 2011 is more likely (4544 + 226) 4770.

It is important to recognize that the number of reported euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands has increased by 19% in 2010 and 13% in 2009.

There were 1923 reported euthanasia deaths in 2006.
There were 2120 reported euthanasia deaths in 2007.
There were 2331 reported euthanasia deaths in 2008.
There were 2636 reported euthanasia deaths in 2009.
There were 3136 reported euthanasia deaths in 2010.
There are 3695 reported euthanasia deaths in 2011.

The rate of deep-continuous sedation has also risen by astronomically in the Netherlands.

The 2001 euthanasia report indicates that about 5.6% of all deaths in the Netherlands were related to deep-continuous sedation. The 2005 euthanasia report indicates that about 8.2% of all deaths in the Netherlands were related to deep-continuous sedation. The 2010 euthanasia report indicates that about 12.3% of all euthanasia deaths are related to deep-continuous sedation.

The rate of deep-continuous sedation has more than doubled in the Netherlands since 2001 and has risen by 50% since 2005.

There is a growing concern about the abuse of the terminal sedation guidelines in the Netherlands. How often are deaths by deep-continuous sedation actually euthanasia?

Combined with the growth in the use of terminal sedation for people who are not otherwise dying (slow euthanasia) and the number of unreported euthanasia deaths, one must conclude that there are abuses occurring in the Netherlands.

On March 1, the euthanasia lobby in the Netherlands launched six mobile euthanasia teams. The NVVE, euthanasia lobby in the Netherlands, announced that they anticipate that the mobile euthanasia teams would carry-out 1000 euthanasia deaths per year.

The mobile euthanasia teams plan to fill unmet demand for euthanasia for people with chronic depression (mental pain), people with disabilities, people with dementia/Alzheimer, loneliness, and those whose request for euthanasia is declined by their physician. In 2010, 45% of all euthanasia requests resulted in death by euthanasia.

Legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide is not safe and the safeguards that are devised to control euthanasia will only protect the doctor and not those who die by euthanasia.

I wonder why there are no prosecutions for deaths without request or consent or the unreported euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands?