New entry in our Archive by @pittella.bsky.social Michela Murgia's Accabadora — the Sardinian tradition of the 'one who finishes' read through the lens of assisted dying narratives. assistedlab.ch/textual/accabadora #AssistedDying #Bioethics #NarrativeEthics assistedlab.ch/textual/acca...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – 'Accabadora' by Michela Murgia

Blending folklore with the post-war reality of the 1950s, ‘Accabadora’ explores motherhood, invisible female labour, and the ethics of euthanasia.

assistedlab.ch

New in the archive: Daniele Pieroni's 'Trascolorare' — the Tuscan poet's meditation on death written before his assisted death in May 2025. This poetical testament became entangled with the legal battles for assisted dying in Italy👇 By @pittella.bsky.social assistedlab.ch/textual/tras...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – ‘Trascolorare’ by Daniele Pieroni

When the poet Daniele Pieroni had a legal assisted suicide, his meditation on death known as ‘Trascolorare’ gained widespread circulation.

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On 15 July French parliamentary deputies voted to legalize assisted dying (aide à mourir) under strict conditions. See below for insights into the cultural objects that shaped this fraught process that lasted years. assistedlab.ch/search?q=Fra...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – Search

Assisted Lab is a research group based at University of St Gallen, Switzerland, with research affiliates in Canada, Northern Ireland, and the Netherlands, which investigates the cultural productions –...

assistedlab.ch

Sharing today our first entry from Uruguay, 1st Latin-American country to carry out a comprehensive euthanasia reform, written by @pittella.bsky.social Florencia Salgueiro's viral social-media thread about her father Pablo, who slowly died from ALS, became part of parliamentary records there.

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – 'Hace un año murió mi padre' by Florencia Salgueiro

In 2021, Florencia Salgueiro wrote a Twitter thread that would become a parliamentary record in Uruguay, leading up to the country's euthanasia reform.

assistedlab.ch

New entry on Spanish play ‘Celebraré mi muerte’ by physician Marcos Hourmann. In 2005 he helped 82-yr-old Carmen die in a Spanish ER, and was fired & sued by the hospital. See @pittella.bsky.social on how this documentary play tries to reclaim his narrative agency. assistedlab.ch/performative...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – 'Celebraré mi muerte' by Marcos Hourmann

Dr. Hourmann’s monologue invites the audience to become the jury he never had, after helping a 82-year-old woman die in Spain, in 2005.

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Our friends at the Applied Ethics Lab @ulethbridge.ca are hosting an important conference on MAiD in Canada: the first 10 years. See👇for details and submit your abstract by August 15

New entry on the Portuguese – Brazilian – Spanish film ‘Sonhar com Leões’ by Paolo Marinou-Blanco See 👇 for a discussion by @pittella.bsky.social of its depiction of suicidal ideations, assisted dying, and border-crossings assistedlab.ch/visual/sonha...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – 'Sonhar com Leões' by Paolo Marinou-Blanco

Seeking a peaceful death, Gilda and Amadeu join Joy Transition International, in a comedy that starts in Portugal and ends in Spain, where a doctor is willing to bend bureaucracies.

assistedlab.ch

🎉New Podcast🎉 Very excited to share that our episode with Peter Torres Fremlin @desibility.bsky.social, Joe Wood and Vanessa Rampton is now available! Listen here for an incredibly rich discussion on assisted dying, disability politics, and what agency really means. assistedlab.ch/podcasts

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – Podcasts

Assisted Lab is a research group based at University of St Gallen, Switzerland, with research affiliates in Canada, Northern Ireland, and the Netherlands, which investigates the cultural productions –...

assistedlab.ch

Who gets to tell a story about an assisted death? Publishing today an analysis of Deborah Ziegler’s book portrait of her daughter, activist Brittany Maynard, from her childhood until her death. @deathwithdignity.org, @compandchoices.bsky.social assistedlab.ch/textual/wild...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – ‘Wild and Precious Life’ / ‘A Mother’s Love’ by Deborah Ziegler

Deborah Ziegler’s book provides an intimate portrait of her daughter, activist Brittany Maynard, from childhood until her death. The book became somewhat controversial due to Brittany’s reported desir...

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See below for our analysis of The Brittany Maynard Story – recorded for @compandchoices.bsky.social, published by @people.com – which influenced California’s End of Life Option Act & end-of-life debates up til today. Photo courtesy of Dan Diaz & TheBrittanyFund.org. assistedlab.ch/visual/the-b...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – ‘The Brittany Maynard Story’ by Brittany Maynard

In this short video, 29-year-old Brittany Maynard shares her story of being diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and of moving to Oregon to access assisted dying. By making this video, Brittany sought...

assistedlab.ch

Hier mit @assistedlab.bsky.social über Schellenursli und assistiertes Sterben philosophieren

In this book physician Éric Kariger shared his version of the ‘Vincent Lambert affair’, a French legal and media storm following the decision to withdraw the interventions that were artificially sustaining Vincent’s life in 2019. Analysis by Jordan McCullough 👇 assistedlab.ch/textual/ma-v...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – ‘Ma vérité sur l’affaire Vincent Lambert’ by Éric Kariger

In this short text, Vincent Lambert’s former physician, Éric Kariger, shares his version of the events that led to the ‘Vincent Lambert affair’, a legal and media storm that followed the decision to w...

assistedlab.ch

A viral 2021 interview with Colombian Martha Sepúlveda, who did not have a terminal prognosis but wanted a legal euthanasia, shows her seemingly unworried attitude and Catholic faith. Analysis by @pittella.bsky.social 👇 assistedlab.ch/visual/notic...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – Noticias Caracol interview with Martha Sepúlveda

In an interview that went viral, Martha Sepúlveda talks with ease about her scheduled euthanasia, seeing no conflict between her decision & her faith.

assistedlab.ch

Blending emotion with humour, the film ‘All of Us’ by Willem Wallyn offers a moving reflection on mortality, vulnerability, and human connection. Analysis by Sophia H. Rüfer 👇 assistedlab.ch/visual/all-o...

Assisted Lab's Living Archive of Assisted Dying – 'All of Us' by Willem Wallyn

Assisted Lab is a research group based at University of St Gallen, Switzerland, with research affiliates in Canada, Northern Ireland, and the Netherlands, which investigates the cultural productions –...

assistedlab.ch

Such a treat to hear @pittella.bsky.social speak about borders, boundaries and margins last week at a Poetry Matters @mcgill.ca event, all themes he's worked on for Assisted Lab. & to learn about the work of Elizabeth Wood and @itsshanicenicole.bsky.social!

The novel 'Komt een vrouw bij de dokter' by Kluun depicts Stijn's struggle to cope with his wife's cancer diagnosis. As she chooses an assisted death, Dutch readers and viewers of the film adaptation had more to say about Stijn’s behaviour and actions than Carmen’s. assistedlab.ch/textual/komt...

'Komt een vrouw bij de dokter' by Kluun

As Carmen chooses to end her life, assisted death is one of the novel’s topics; yet, readers and viewers of the film adaptation had more to say about Stijn’s behaviour and actions than Carmen’s.

assistedlab.ch

Thanks so much to MCPHS, the always phenomenal @drhophd.bsky.social, and wonderful colleagues at the Center for Health Humanities in Boston for hosting us yesterday to talk about the stories of assisted dying!

Read Jordan McCullough's "The Bioethics of Fiction" and the whole new issue of l'esprit créateur FREE #S2O #OpenAccess at @projectmuse.bsky.social tiny.one/2p9fad55 It's a special issue on "Future Worlds of Health," guest edited by Benjamin Dalton, Benjamin Gagnon-Chainey, and Kaliane Ung

Assisted Lab@assistedlab.bsky.social · 4mo ago

✨new publication ✨from Assisted Lab's Jordan McCullough on the potential of fiction for bioethical reflection on assisted dying in L'Esprit Créateur @hopkinspress.bsky.social dx.doi.org/10.1353/esp....

When presenting this project we are almost always asked about narratives on assisted dying and dementia. New entry on this difficult topic and ‘Die Fliegengöttin’ by Hansjörg Schertenleib by @marcakeller.eurosky.social assistedlab.ch/textual/die-...

✨new publication ✨from Assisted Lab's Jordan McCullough on the potential of fiction for bioethical reflection on assisted dying in L'Esprit Créateur @hopkinspress.bsky.social dx.doi.org/10.1353/esp....

This documentary 'T is Goed Zo' follows the last three months of Eelco de Gooijer, a 38-year-old Dutch man suffering from severe mental health problems who decides to end his life by euthanasia. Analysis by Sophia H. Rüfer 👇 assistedlab.ch/visual/t-is-...

'‘T Is Goed Zo' by Jesse van Venrooij

This documentary follows the last months of Eelco de Gooijer, a 38-year-old Dutch man suffering from severe mental health problems who decides to end his life by euthanasia.

assistedlab.ch

Much of the disability movement is against assisted dying, but disabled people have also been at the forefront of demanding access to it. This article takes a step back to see the complexities of what's at stake, in terms of policy & personal experiences. www.disabilitydebrief.org/debrief/coun...

How different countries approach assisted dying

Dignity, autonomous choice, and the slippery slope

disabilitydebrief.org

'Bis dass der Tod' by author and physician Jens Petersen, a fictional account of a ‘mercy killing,’ won the prestigious Ingeborg Bachmann Prize and challenges the reader's ethical thinking For an analysis by @marcakeller.eurosky.social for Assisted Lab 👇 assistedlab.ch/textual/bis-...

'Bis dass der Tod' by Jens Petersen

'Bis dass der Tod' by author and physician Jens Petersen, a fictional account of a ‘mercy killing,’ won the prestigious Ingeborg Bachmann Prize

assistedlab.ch

Novel 'Ik omhels je met duizend armen' by @ronaldgiphart.bsky.social of @detaalstaat.bsky.social discusses euthanasia in the Netherlands when there was no law, but doctors could perform it without risking prosecution. Analysis by Wouter Schrover for Assisted Lab👇 assistedlab.ch/textual/ik-o...

'Ik omhels je met duizend armen' by Ronald Giphart

The novel presents an ambivalent perspective on autonomy and dependency, but ultimately offers a distinctly positive view of assisted dying.

assistedlab.ch

3/3 If you happen to be in Bielefeld, join us. I'm looking forward to meeting & dialoguing with other researchers doing transdisciplinary work in Medical Humanities❗ 👉 For more info on Assisted Lab: assistedlab.ch

Home

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2/3 I'm thrilled to share some insights at Bielefeld University on Mar/6, during the MED METHODS event, dedicated to Experimental Research. ℹ️ My intervention is titled: «Expiring visas: Outlining the right to die through bordercrossing narratives in Spanish and Portuguese.» Here's my abstract.

1/3 Since 2024, I have collaborated with @assistedlab.bsky.social to research cultural objects that have influenced the legal debate on MAiD. 💡 As my work has been haunted by borders & bureaucracies, I became interested in how MAiD is often framed as a bordercrossing that requires a visa.

'Translúcido' follows the last day of Rubén, an Ecuadorian immigrant in NYC who decided to forgo cancer treatment & end his life. An ECU/VEN/USA co-production, the film has reverberated differently in the 3 countries. I've written for @assistedlab.bsky.social about the film & its repercussions.

'Translúcido' by Leonard Zelig

The film follows the last day of Rubén, an Ecuadorian immigrant living in NYC, who decides to forgo cancer treatment and end his life by midnight.

assistedlab.ch

New in our archive! Tot altijd, a film by Nic Balthazar, tells the story of Mario Verstraete, a patient with multiple sclerosis who wanted the legalization of assisted dying in Belgium. On the film, its critcism and praise see the analysis by Wouter Schrover👇 assistedlab.ch/visual/tot-a...

'Tot altijd' by Nic Balthazar

Feature film based on the real life of the Belgian activist Mario Verstraete.

assistedlab.ch

Thank you Jacalyn Duffin @drugshortage.bsky.social for this generous and thoughtful review of our archive 😍 medhum.org/review/jacal...

Assistedlab.ch–A Living Archive of Assisted Dying

A thoughtful review of a Swiss-based digital archive examining cultural dimensions of assisted dying debates.

medhum.org