The Groningen Protocol is a medical protocol created in September 2004 by Eduard Verhagen, the medical director of the department of pediatrics at the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) in Groningen, the Netherlands. It contains directives with criteria under which physicians can perform "active ending of life on infants" (child euthanasia) without fear of legal prosecution.
Origin
The protocol was created by a committee of physicians and others at the University Medical Center Groningen, in consultation with the Groningen district attorney, and has been ratified by the Dutch National Association of Pediatricians.
According to its authors, the Groningen Protocol was developed in order to assist with the decision making process when considering actively ending the life of a newborn, by providing the information required to assess the situation within a legal and medical framework. In July 2005 the Protocol was declared to be mandatory by the Dutch Society for Pediatrics.
Protocol
The protocol, drawn up after extensive consultation between physicians, lawyers, parents and the...