
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


Els and Jan have fewer than three days left on Earth. Childhood sweethearts who met in kindergarten more than six decades ago, they know precisely when they will die. And how. On an early summer’s Monday morning they will travel to a nearby hospice. Some of their family and friends will accompany them. And then precisely at 10.30am - holding hands, they hope - two doctors will administer lethal medication to each of them.
In the Netherlands, euthanasia and assisted suicide are legal if someone is suffering unbearably with no prospect of getting better. The suffering can be physical or psychological. Els was diagnosed with dementia. Jan lived with pain 24/7.
Last year, 33 Dutch couples chose to die like Els and Jan. And in February, one of the Netherlands’ former Prime Ministers ended his life by euthanasia together with his wife.
For Assignment, Linda Pressly meets Els and Jan as they prepare for the end. And she explores the complex issue of allowing euthanasia in cases of dementia. A warning: some listeners might find the content of this documentary upsetting.
By BBC World Service4.3
16071,607 ratings
Els and Jan have fewer than three days left on Earth. Childhood sweethearts who met in kindergarten more than six decades ago, they know precisely when they will die. And how. On an early summer’s Monday morning they will travel to a nearby hospice. Some of their family and friends will accompany them. And then precisely at 10.30am - holding hands, they hope - two doctors will administer lethal medication to each of them.
In the Netherlands, euthanasia and assisted suicide are legal if someone is suffering unbearably with no prospect of getting better. The suffering can be physical or psychological. Els was diagnosed with dementia. Jan lived with pain 24/7.
Last year, 33 Dutch couples chose to die like Els and Jan. And in February, one of the Netherlands’ former Prime Ministers ended his life by euthanasia together with his wife.
For Assignment, Linda Pressly meets Els and Jan as they prepare for the end. And she explores the complex issue of allowing euthanasia in cases of dementia. A warning: some listeners might find the content of this documentary upsetting.

7,789 Listeners

373 Listeners

1,063 Listeners

5,509 Listeners

965 Listeners

589 Listeners

1,869 Listeners

1,072 Listeners

357 Listeners

602 Listeners

976 Listeners

411 Listeners

415 Listeners

736 Listeners

837 Listeners

363 Listeners

1,042 Listeners

3,211 Listeners

1,071 Listeners

772 Listeners

1,041 Listeners

371 Listeners