An Ottawa woman who has been trying to get approval for medical aid in dying for years says the long wait has greatly reduced her quality of life and hopes others will face fewer barriers as she prepares to travel five hours for next week’s procedure.
Margaret (Maggie) Bristow describes her chronic pain as “excruciating” and “crippling”, living with degenerative disc disease, fibromyalgia, spinal stenosis, arthritis of the spine, as well as bulging discs and bone spurs.
“I feel like people are taking ice packs and sticking them in my chest … I feel like my skin is burned off my body 24/7,” Bristow said from her couch, sitting as still as possible .
She said she slept sitting up for two decades because of her back pain.
“For the last time, I feel like my lower back is going to come out of my skin,” Bristow said, wincing in pain.
Bristow describes his successful career decades ago in the space industry as “one of the best moments of my life.” She was also passionate about fostering shelter dogs and lovingly tells stories about falling in love with each one.
But from 1998, the pain began and her health began to deteriorate significantly.
WATCH | Bristow describes his journey:
Woman forced to travel for medical care dies after being refused in Ottawa
Margaret Bristow, who has lived with severe chronic pain since 1998, says she was elated to finally receive medical aid in dying after being turned down three times by Ottawa-based evaluators. She plans to travel to Brampton for the procedure in August.
After seeing a neurologist, neurosurgeons, pain specialists and trying various therapies and opioid medications for her chronic pain, Bristow said “nothing really worked for me.”
Bristow said she has applied for medical assistance in dying, also called MAID, three times since the procedure was decriminalized in 2016 – twice before and once after the latest legislative changes in 2021, which broadened patient eligibility criteria.
All three times, she said, her Ottawa assessors declared her ineligible.
“I could have followed another route instead [them] drags me and makes me wait, makes me hope. They chose to make my life horrible,” Bristow said.
When she asked why she was recently denied, Bristow said she was told her assessor didn’t feel “comfortable” approving her.
“They left me thrown aside like I was suffering.”
Bristow sits in her living room in Ottawa in July. That month, she learned the news that her MAID application had been approved in the Toronto area. (Nick Persaud/CBC)
Forced to turn elsewhere
A patient must have a “severe and incurable medical condition” to qualify for MAID, according to the federal framework — meaning they have a serious and incurable illness, disease or disability; are in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capacity; and endure physical or psychological suffering that is intolerable to them and cannot be alleviated under conditions they consider acceptable. From 2021, patients like Bristow are eligible even if “natural death is not reasonably foreseeable”.
Bristow said her family doctor put her in touch with MAID evaluators in the Toronto area this spring.
Last month, Bristow received news that she had been approved.
“[I’m] just over the moon that finally, after all these years of fighting, I can finally get what I need,” she said.
Her procedure will take place on August 10. She will travel to Brampton, Ontario, where her provider is – taking strong painkillers to help her get there. She chose to do it in a hospital because she wants to donate her organs.
“I thought Ottawa was the capital of Canada. Why don’t they give me the same thing? Why did they force me to go over their heads and make me travel,” said Bristow, who has been forced to live for years.
“Shame on Ottawa.”
Eligibility scores may vary for each clinician
Dr. Chantal Perrault, a Toronto family physician and MAID provider, said she has evaluated several Ottawa patients who had difficulty finding an evaluator in time.
“That’s part of the challenge,” she said. “There aren’t that many of us around the country.
Perot explained how MAID coordination is not standardized across the country; for example, while Ottawa has a regional network, there is no such network in Toronto.
Bristow had been trying to get medical help to die for years in Ottawa, where she lives. Although several evaluators turned her down here, she was approved and will go to Brampton, Ontario, for the procedure next week. (Nick Persaud/CBC)
It’s not uncommon to hear of patients traveling to get MAID in Ontario, she said, because there may not be health professionals nearby willing or able to provide MAID in some areas. Some even travel from province to province.
Each assessor makes a clinical decision about a patient’s eligibility on a case-by-case basis, based on their interpretation of the legislation, the patient’s history and conditions, she explained.
“It’s not uncommon for a person to be found ineligible by one evaluator but found suitable by another,” Perot said.
Ottawa MAID respects physicians’ right to refuse
The Champlain Regional MAID Network, which runs through The Ottawa Hospital, declined an interview.
In an email, the network said all health professionals participate on a voluntary basis.
If a doctor or nurse is “unavailable or inconvenient” during the process, the network said it makes “every effort” to refer patients to other providers who can support them.
“The right to conscientious objection is a core value and principle of MAID,” the statement said. “If a provider doesn’t want to accept a case, we respect that right.”
The provincial health department also declined an interview. It says if a regional network turns a patient away, its care coordination service helps connect them with alternative clinicians.
A regional network may have its own capacity, resource or internal policy issues that may prevent it from providing MAID to some patients, the ministry said.
The world is losing a ‘gem’, says a friend
Ann Marie Goddon met Bristow through the Chronic Pain Association of Canada and calls her a good friend.
“I’ve seen an incredibly proud woman, I’ve seen grace, I’ve seen thoughtfulness, generosity, a lot of love and even moments of humor despite the situation,” Godon said.
She calls Bristow a “survivor to the end.”
“Maggie is a gem and we will all lose her. The world will lose her,” Godon said.
A photo of Bristow’s late fiance and “soul mate” Brian sits on her coffee table. (Priscilla Kee Sun Huang/CBC)
Bristow said she wants to share her story in hopes that others won’t experience similar barriers in the future.
For people who are denied MAID, she recommends seeking help from a family doctor, specialist or lawyer or the province’s care coordination team.
Holding a photo of her and her late fiance Brian, Bristow said she was looking forward to being reunited with her “soul mate”.
“This is the love of my life,” she said.
“Not many people manage to meet their true love. And I had it, and I had it for four and a half years. … And I hope to see it soon.”
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