End of life, the Region moves forward. The names of the commissions

The Large Area Evaluation Commissions have been completed, composed of doctors and specialists who will have the task of ascertaining the clinical and personal conditions of end-of-life requests. The college has a fundamental role in the process envisaged by the resolution on medically assisted suicide of the Council of Emilia Romagna which implements the ruling of the Constitutional Court (n. 242 of 2019). The Commissions are divided into three areas: Emilia Nord which includes Piacenza, Parma, Reggio Emilia and Modena; Central Emilia which includes Bologna and Ferrara and Romagna with Forlì, Cesena, Ravenna and Rimini.

The Emilia Nord Commission includes: Marcella Saccò (palliative care doctor), Edoardo Picetti (anesthetist-resuscitator), Sabino Pelosi (legal doctor), Gian Maria Galeazzi (psychiatrist), Jessica Mandrioli (neurologist), Massimo Dominici (oncologist), Daniele Vallisa (hematologist), Enrica Lavezzini (pharmacologist-pharmacist), Federica Ronchetti (psychologist).

Central Emilia Commission: Fabrizio Zanotto (palliative care doctor), Lucia Farabegoli (anesthetist-resuscitator), Vania Maselli (legal doctor), Carmine Petio (psychiatrist), Rita Rinaldi (neurologist), Luciano Scopece (oncologist), Francesca Bonifazi (haematologist), Alice Restani (pharmacologist-pharmacist), Elisa Righini (psychologist).

Romagna Commission: Marco Maltoni (palliative care doctor), Costanza Martino (anesthetist-resuscitator), Donata Dal Monte (legal doctor), Nazario Santolini (psychiatrist), Maria Grazia Piscaglia (neurologist), Stefano Tamberi (oncologist), Claudia Cellini (hematologist) , Nicola Magrini (pharmacologist-pharmacist), Laura Cavana (psychologist).

This is the process for requesting medically assisted suicide: the patient’s request must be sent to the health management of their local health authority with the necessary documentation for the evaluation attached. The health management forwards the request, within three days, to the coordinator of the Vast Area Commission and to the president of the regional Committee for ethics in the clinic (Corec). The Commission begins the complex investigation on verifying the requirements and offering alternatives at the end of life. It carries out its own assessments and draws up a report which is sent to Corec which will formulate a mandatory but non-binding opinion which will be sent to the Commission which will draw up a final report. The document will be sent to the patient or his delegate, to the medical director of the competent local health authority and to that of the hospital if the person is hospitalized.

Against the resolution of the Bonaccini council, Valentina Castaldini, group leader in the Forza Italia region, had presented an appeal to the TAR of Emilia Romagna in March. On April 12, the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and the Ministry of Health also filed another appeal with the administrative judges against the resolution.