Ep. 10: Philip Nitschke - Founder of Exit International

Our guest on this episode is Dr. Philip Nitschke is the Founder of Exit International. In 1996, Philip became the first doctor in the world to administer a legal, lethal voluntary injection under the short-lived Rights of the Terminally Ill Act 1995 (NT). Four of Philip’s terminally ill patients used this law to end their suffering before the law was overturned in March 1997 by the Australian Parliament. That same year, Philip formed the Voluntary Euthanasia Research foundation (now called Exit International). Ongoing pressure from the Australian Medical Board led him to hand in his medical registration in 2015, and he now works full time developing end of life options for the sick and elderly and publishing details through his on-line Peaceful Pill Handbook. Philip's autobiography entitled Damned If I Do was published by Melbourne University Press in 2013. The website for Exit International is www.exitinternational.net