Death With Dignity
Longtime lobbyist John Radcliffe, 74, terminally ill with stage-four cancer, is working to change Hawaii’s laws that prohibit access to life-ending medication when suffering becomes unbearable
Putting one’s life on the line for a cause is nothing new to lobbyist John Radcliffe. The deft negotiator made a career of it. But now he literally is doing so to awaken our community to an issue.
If he and supporters are successful, Hawaii will be among seven states to legalize medical aid in dying.
Radcliffe, 74, who is terminally ill with stage-four cancer, has been in the news a lot lately to express his wish to have access to life-ending medication should his suffering become unbearable. But currently in Hawaii that is a crime.
Through legislative and legal action, Radcliffe hopes to empower individuals to make life-ending decisions that do not subject doctors to prosecution in order to assist patients in that process.
Radcliffe’s family is in full support of his wish, but unless things change, this will not be among the options available to him when he suffers prolonged, debilitating pain.
Words matter in discussing this sensitive issue. So Radcliffe is quick to set parameters on what he is — and isn’t — talking about.
John Radcliffe says if the legal system is a barrier to quality of life, you change the law
“Aid in dying is a medical practice to treat adults who are terminally ill with six months or less to live,” Radcliffe explains. “They must be mentally capable of making their own decision to request a prescription for life-ending medication from their physician, which would be self-administered.”
Aid in dying, he emphasizes, is not assisted suicide or euthanasia.
“To a terminally ill person, the term ‘assisted suicide’ is offensive and hurtful,” the Makiki resident says. “I want to live, but my condition is incurable. There is no hope for a better outcome.
“Suicide is secretive and often impulsive, without involvement of family, friends or health care professionals,” he adds.
Medical aid in dying also is known as death with dignity.
“The issue is really about dignity, pain and unnecessary suffering,” Radcliffe says. “I come from the position that you should do as much as you can as well as you can for other people for as long as you can.
“I am in a unique situation to do that,” asserts the government relations expert.
Radcliffe was diagnosed with incurable colon cancer in 2014 that has metastasized to his liver. He’s been hospitalized three times, been in the emergency room 15 times and has had 42 chemotherapy treatments.
He took his 43rd chemo treatment Wednesday, Jan. 18, while seated next to state Sen. Rosalind Baker at the opening of the state Legislature.
That’s a bit dramatic, we say about his unorthodox tactic of persuasion.
“Nah,” Radcliffe says with a laugh. “No one even noticed. That’s why I have to make a point of it. When you talk to legislators about cancer, it tends to be theoretical. Well, this isn’t theoretical to me. This is real.”
As a union organizer and lobbyist for four decades, including 13 years as executive director of the Hawaii State Teachers Association, Radcliffe knows that addressing social problems with lawmakers is not easy.
His credibility is at stake. “The legislators know me,” says the co-founder and president emeritus of Capitol Consultants of Hawaii. “They trust me. They know I won’t lie to them or give them bad information.
“But I can’t imagine that with 80 percent of voters being in support that they would be opposed,” Radcliffe suggests.
A poll conducted last November by Anthology Research shows 80 percent of Hawaii voters across all demographics believe a medical aid in dying option should be legal. Strong support (55 percent) outweighs strong opposition (8 percent) by an almost seven-to-one margin, while 12 percent oppose the option.
“This is about the ability to have a choice when you’re suffering,” Radcliffe states. “It’s comforting to some people to know they have a choice, as it is to me.
“I want to be in control of my life, as I’ve always been. It’s about quality of life. If the legal system is a barrier, ‘you change the law.'”
That’s the second strategy he and the advocacy organization Compassion & Choice Hawaii will mount after years of failing to get legislation passed.
Radcliffe, retired oncologist Dr. Chuck Miller, and Compassion & Choices Hawaii are plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the state of Hawaii asserting that the Hawaii Constitution and existing state law allow the practice of medical aid in dying.
“Mr. Radcliffe can’t wait and see whether the courts or the Legislature will ultimately solve this question, but our hope is that this option will be made available to him as soon as possible. By filing litigation now, we have put the process in motion on all fronts,” says Mary Steiner, Compassion & Choices Hawaii campaign manager.
Aid in dying currently is permitted legally in Oregon, Washington, Montana, Vermont, California and Colorado.
In Hawaii, a Governor’s Blue Ribbon panel on living and dying with dignity in 1998 recommended changing existing laws, rules and practices to give wider choices in end-of-life decisions, including physician-assisted death.
End-of-life options include declining treatment or avoiding unwanted medical treatment, palliative care (pain management) or VSED (voluntarily stopping eating and drinking).
Radcliffe’s is not the only story of a terminally ill person seeking end-of-life options. There are many stories of patients, families and friends who know the plight of long-suffering individuals.
There are heart-wrenching accounts of bewildered care-givers who experience the helplessness and difficulty of aiding agonized loved ones. They suffer in silence.
But proponents of legislation urge citizens to let their voices be heard, whether it’s by letters to legislators, testimonies to help educate the community, or joining forces to add representation to the cause.
“If this means anything to people, they must show up,” Radcliffe urges. “This is the year that this must happen.
“It’s too late for me. But it doesn’t have to be for others,” he implores.
Opponents cite spiritual, moral and modern medical advances to counter the need for more options. In fact, emotions run high when the dialogue is about death — the D word.
“Local people no like talk about dis kine stuff,” Radcliffe says.
Actually, all people don’t enjoy bringing up the subject. Talking about death is a social taboo. It’s just not done
in polite society. But with Hawaii’s aging population, it is an essential and timely topic for private and public discourse.
In Oregon, for instance, end-of-life care reportedly is improved since the law’s implementation in 1997. It is said to be thanks in large part to the dialogue the law encourages between people and their doctors.
Hospice use is high and referrals are up, as is other use of palliative care.
But what of the man to whom we address this living eulogy?
“I want to be remembered as a good, loyal friend and a decent human being,” he says.
“I hope this legislation passes without trouble,” he reflects, citing the move toward patient-directed care. “It would say something about us as a people. If we aren’t humane people, then who are we?”
As an inspired philanthropist once said, “There’s a lot of difference between human being and being human.”
Many will remember the contributions John Radcliffe has made to this community. He has spent his life fighting for causes. This will be his last and perhaps best fight.
As retired teacher Carol Sakamoto says in tribute, “Wish him well, and tell him that all the teachers will be praying for his success and thank him for his many years of service.”
That’s what living well and making a difference is all about.
COMPASSION & CHOICES HAWAII hosts a free public education forum on medical aid in dying Tuesday, Jan. 31, 5:30-7 p.m., at the state Capitol Auditorium. For more information, visit compassionandchoiceshawaii.org
