SPAIN became the fourth European Union country in 2021 to legalise euthanasia.
The issue hit the headlines again this week after Noelia Castillo, 25, received life-ending medicine in Catalunya on Thursday evening.
That followed a court denying her father’s appeal in a legal battle that started in 2024.
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The public battle over Castillo’s right to die came to embody the depth of feeling and division across Spain on the right to assisted dying.
According to government figures from the last available year of 2024, 426 requests for assisted dying were approved
The case of Noelia Castillo was the first time that a challenge against a euthanasia applicant went before a court.
There are strict conditions that must be met before a patient can choose to end their life.
They include being a Spanish national or legal resident and being ‘fully aware and conscious’ when they request the procedure.
The euthanasia law encompasses people aged 18 years and over.
It includes those who suffer ‘a serious and incurable disease’ or a ‘serious, chronic and incapacitating condition’ that affects autonomy and that causes ‘constant and intolerable physical or psychological suffering’.
An applicant must also be of legal age and be ‘fully aware and conscious’.
The application can be withdrawn at any point if the person changes their mind.
In addition, a person must have access to all the medical information and be informed of all alternatives and treatments.
They must fill out two forms, within 15 days of each other, voluntarily stating their consent and a doctor must certify that the patient suffers from a serious and incurable disease or suffers from a serious, chronic and disabling disease.
After the patient submits their wish to die, medical professionals will have 10 days to decide whether to approve the application.
Each Spanish region has an Evaluation and Monitoring Commission for a first review and then a second review will be carried out.
The process can be carried out either at hospital or at home.
If a patient requests euthanasia, the doctor in charge will stay with them until the moment of their death.
If, on the other hand, a patient wants an assisted suicide, the patient will be the one who administers the substance themselves and will be under observation until the moment of their death.
If the patient himself is not in a position to request euthanasia due to a disability, but has been able to put his wish in writing, a family member who acts as legal representative will be able to assist.
If a doctor does not believe that the patient will live long enough to complete the whole process, the application could be sped up.
The law also states that health professionals have the ‘the right not to meet the demands and complete any action regulated in this law that is incompatible with their own beliefs’.
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