'A trailblazer to the end': Lola's legacy for Voluntary Assisted Dying

On February 8, 2024, Lola Hope Dickson of Blaxland became the first person to die by Voluntary Assisted Dying at Springwood Hospital.

Lorraine, also known as 'Rainey', said her mum spent almost 10 years suffering from heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary lung disease.

She found out about Voluntary Assisted Dying [VAD] and contacted NSW Health to see if her mum was eligible.

One of Lola's last requests to her daughter was that the story of her death appear in ACM's Blue Mountains Gazette so others could have a peaceful, dignified ending.

"By accident really we found out she not only qualified, but became their first to be assisted to pass away on her own terms," Lorraine told the Gazette.

They were able to advise Lorraine of the eligibility criteria, as well as providing support during the approval process.

"We beat a painful death. I helped set her soul free, so I feel calm and a peace in my soul. And that was the difference for me with Voluntary Assisted Dying." In Lola's case a doctor administered the end-of-life medication.

Voluntary Assisted Dying became legal in NSW on November 28, 2023, for eligible people.

The person must have an advanced and progressive disease, illness, or medical condition that is expected to cause their death within six months (or 12 months for neurodegenerative diseases like motor neurone disease). It is now legal in every state in Australia, but not in the Northern Territory.

Born in Guyra on June 23, 1933, Lola Hope Dickson was a country girl, growing up in Tingha, on the Northern Tablelands in the New England region of NSW.

Her father was a tin miner and he moved their family of four children in 1949 to Redfern to take up work in the Tooths Brewery and later at the meatworks.

At 16, Lola, left school, taking a job printing cheque books for John Sands stationery company. It was here that she met and later married her truck driver husband Stanley Dickson.

In 1961, Lola and Stan built their family home in Blaxland in the Blue Mountains. Their only child Lorraine was two at the time. Lola lived in the same house in Blaxland until her illness forced her into hospital.

As a young mother Lola worked as a nanny to the Totenhofer "The Tots" family, who owned the hardware store in Blaxland. Lola later worked as the hardware store manager, where Lorraine also often worked, after school for pocket money.

Lorraine became a veterinary nurse in Katoomba and Lithgow and had a family of her own. As Lola's health deteriorated she moved back in with her mum in Blaxland for the final months to look after her.

"As a vet nurse I understand the compassion surrounding the euthanasia of animals, therefore the process of VAD became a gift, to help my mother pass on her own terms without pain and suffering.

"My grief ... was prior to mum passing away with all the pain and suffering she had. That broke my heart."

Once Lola required permanent home oxygen, her quality of life had diminished considerably.

"She wasn't allowed in the kitchen anymore because of the gas stove. She hated that, being on a tube up her nose 24 hours a day. She tore her hip getting out of bed, so she slept in a mobility chair for three months because it was more comfortable. She would constantly say 'this ain't living'," Lorraine said.

Lola did spend some time in palliative care and phoned her family and friends to say her goodbyes.

"She thought she would pass away within days. However, this did not happen and she became increasingly frustrated with her declining health, failing organs and discomfort and still she lived." It was then Lola made the decision about VAD.

Having a shower, getting her blood pressure taken, were all painful in the end.

"She found having her blood pressure taken was excruciating ... and her body would swell up at times and she would need fluid tablets to stop her skin splitting.

"She was getting blisters around her ankles with swelling. She ended up with dermatitis. She was getting skin cancers. I could see them growing pretty much before my eyes. She was a very proud woman. But everything became difficult, even having a shower.

"The humidity of the shower would bring on an asthma attack. She would say, 'I don't want to have a shower anymore'."

Lola elected to pass with an injection administered by an approved doctor registered for the procedure.

"Once the decision was made, her demeanour changed from one of frustration, to joy and a sense of great relief."

For Lorraine, the last memories of her mother are fond ones.

"The days that followed, saw a celebration of her life with a BBQ, lots of stories, memories, humour, family, friends and plenty of whiskey.

"She died with a smile on her face, listening to a Celtic song Going Home."

Her mother also recorded herself saying the Scottish poem Let Me Go by Christina Georgina Rossetti in 2018.

"It says:

'Why cry for a soul set free?

Miss me a little, but not for long

And not with your head bowed low

Remember the love that once we shared

Miss me, but let me go.'

"I know I gave Mum the greatest gift of helping to set her soul free. I honoured her wishes."

"Mum's the most courageous woman. She was a trailblazer to the end."

Lola Hope Dickson's ashes will be scattered in Guyra, after a celebration of her life in Blaxland in coming months.