Why more doctors are validating near-death experiences

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · Jun 08, 2026 · 1293 words · By Jorge Andrés Delgado-Ron

Psychedelics and Altered States Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) Veridical Perception Medical Education Gap

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What to know about Psychedelics and Altered States

The author discusses near-death experiences (NDEs), arguing that they should be integrated into medical education and treated with clinical openness. The text highlights the similarities between NDEs and psychedelic experiences and presents evidence regarding veridical perceptions during out-of-body experiences.

Propaganda risk 20%

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 1

Topics 4

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center75%

Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

According to an influential study published by The Lancet in 2001, one out of 10 patients who go into cardiac arrest will come back with a new core memory.

Why it matters

This “near-death experience” (or NDE) is so vivid and convincing that it often reshapes the patient’s view of the world, the afterlife and their own identity.

Common ground

Unlike fragmented or disorganized experiences seen in hallucinations or delirium, NDE narratives are characterized by a high degree of clarity and persistence.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Psychedelics and Altered States story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that My article “Five things to know about: Near-death experiences,” published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal?
How does this story connect Psychedelics and Altered States with Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/why-more-doctors-are-validating-near-death-experienc…

analyticsAnalysis

20%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 90%

Minor concerns. Some persuasive language detected, but largely factual.

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 70% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 3

info Single Source 3

verified Verified 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

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Claim 1: “My article “Five things to know about: Near-death experiences,” published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results confirm the existence of content regarding near-death experiences published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), including a podcast and an article.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Assisted suicide is the process by which a person, with the assistance of a medical professional, takes actions to end their life. This practice is strictly regulated by the laws and rules of the stat…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assisted_suicide

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In the United States, the term "assisted suicide" is typically used to describe what proponents refer to as "medical aid in dying" (MAID), in which a terminally ill adult is prescribed, and self-admin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assisted_suicide_in_the_United…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Euthanasia or assisted suicide is legal in Canada under certain circumstances. Its legal form is called medical assistance in dying (abbreviated as MAiD or MAID). Before legalization of the practice b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_and_assisted_suicid…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 2: “NDEs are often evaluated through the Greyson NDE scale”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm that the Greyson NDE scale (developed in 1983) is the most used tool for evaluating near-death experiences.

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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 16, 2026 ... The first scale, the 16-item Near-Death Experience Scale (NDE Scale), was developed at UVA in 1983 by Greyson and used extensively in hundreds ...
https://www.uvahealth.com/news/scientists-aim-to-improve-how…

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web search NEUTRAL — This scale has rarely been used in research because the NDE scale was developed shortly after by Greyson. (1983) and is currently the most used tool allowing a ...
https://med.virginia.edu/perceptual-studies/wp-content/uploa…

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web search NEUTRAL — This scale has rarely been used in research because the NDE scale was developed shortly after by Greyson (1983) and is currently the most used tool allowing a ...
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S10538…

verified

Claim 3: “The AWAreness during REsuscitation II (AWARE II) Study includes a comprehensive thematic description of NDEs in its supplementary material.”

VERIFIED

A web search result explicitly states: 'The AWAreness during REsuscitation II (AWARE II) Study includes a comprehensive thematic description of NDEs in its supplementary material.'

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A near-death experience (NDE) is a profound personal experience associated with death or impending death, which researchers describe as having similar characteristics.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near-death_experience

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web search NEUTRAL — The AWAreness during REsuscitation II (AWARE II) Study includes a comprehensive thematic description of NDEs in its supplementary material.
https://theconversation.com/why-more-doctors-are-validating-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The notion of near death experiences (NDE) have fascinated people for a long time. The notion is that some people report profound experiences after waking up from a cardiac arrest - their heart stoppe…
https://theness.com/neurologicablog/aware-ii-near-death-expe…

info

Claim 4: “The International Association of Near Death Studies published a compilation of more than 100 cases in the second edition of The Self Does Not Die in 2023.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for 'second' returned definitions of time and dictionary meanings, not information regarding the book 'The Self Does Not Die' or the International Association of Near Death Studies.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day, first into hours, then into minutes, and lastly into seconds, for a total of 24 × 60 × 60 = 86 400 seconds per day. That …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — In science, a second is the time it takes for a caesium atom to vibrate 9,192,631,770 (around 9 billion) times. Scientists measure the second this way because the length of a day changes all the time.
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second

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web search NEUTRAL — 3 days ago · The meaning of SECOND is next to the first in place or time. How to use second in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/second

verified

Claim 5: “the HEAL Lab developed a community-based public health guide for lower-risk psilocybin use”

VERIFIED

A web search result explicitly mentions a report titled 'TRIP the Ingestion of Psilocybin: An introduction to community-based public health guidance for lower risk psilocybin use', which aligns with the claim.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Faith healing is the superstitious practice of prayer and gestures (such as laying on of hands) that are believed by some to elicit divine intervention in spiritual and physical healing, especially th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith_healing

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Straight from the Lab is a 2003 bootleg album consisting of previously unreleased songs by Eminem. Some of the songs on the album were scheduled to be released the following year on Eminem's fifth stu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straight_from_the_Lab

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Goop Lab (also known as The Goop Lab with Gwyneth Paltrow) is an American documentary series about the lifestyle and wellness company Goop, founded by American actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who acts as…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Goop_Lab

+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 6: “the authors of the AWAreness during Resuscitation (AWARE) study... placed over 1,000 signs across five hospitals at overhead heights, facing the ceiling”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to verify the placement of 1,000 signs in the AWARE study.

help

Claim 7: “Despite following over 2,000 cardiac arrest patients, only a very small number survived and were interviewed. Out of them, two included out-of-body reports, and neither occurred where researchers had placed signs.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to verify the specific number of survivors interviewed or the results regarding the hidden signs in the AWARE study.

info

Claim 8: “the Healthy Ecologies and Lifestyles Lab (HEAL) at Simon Fraser University found a lack of clear, evidence-based guidance for both the public and health-care professionals [regarding psychedelics].”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence discusses psychedelic research and Professor David Olson, but does not explicitly mention the HEAL Lab at Simon Fraser University identifying a lack of evidence-based guidance in the search results provided.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Rookie is an American drama series created by Alexi Hawley for ABC. The series follows John Nolan, a man in his forties, who becomes the oldest rookie at the Los Angeles Police Department. The ser…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Rookie_episodes

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mary Jeannie May Simon (born August 21, 1947) is a Canadian civil servant, diplomat, and former broadcaster who served as the 30th governor general of Canada from 2021 to 2026. She is Inuk on her moth…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Simon

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Underworld: Awakening is a 2012 American action horror film directed by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein from a screenplay by Len Wiseman, John Hlavin, J. Michael Straczynski, and Allison Burnett, based o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underworld:_Awakening

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 9: “According to an influential study published by The Lancet in 2001, one out of 10 patients who go into cardiac arrest will come back with a new core memory.”

CORROBORATED

The claim that 10% of cardiac arrest patients experience NDEs is supported by multiple web search results, including a specific reference to an influential study in The Lancet and a 1News report citing the same statistic.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 28 February 1998, a fraudulent research paper primarily authored by physician Andrew Wakefield, along with twelve other coauthors (titled "Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancet_MMR_vaccine-autism_repo…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lancetes is a genus of predaceous diving beetles in the family Dytiscidae, the only member of the subfamily Lancetinae. There are more than 20 described species in Lancetes, found in Australasia and t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancetes

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sodium is a chemical element; it has symbol Na (from Neo-Latin natrium) and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the per…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 10: “NDE researchers Marieta Pehlivanova and Bruce Greyson conducted a survey of 215 University of Virginia physicians in 2024.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While Bruce Greyson and the University of Virginia are mentioned in the context of NDE research, there is no evidence in the provided results confirming a specific survey of 215 physicians conducted in 2024.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Jun 5, 2025 ... The empirical rigor of Bruce Greyson's NDE Scale, Ian Stevenson's ... University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA. Categories by ...
https://consciousness.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/2025-0…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — NB Dr Peter Fenwick Memorial Service. Friday 21st February, 2:30 pm, Christ Church Chapel, 14 Gallery Rd, London SE21 7AD. Wednesday January 29 Eva Rider ...
https://www.nicholashagger.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/…

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web search NEUTRAL — May 24, 2021 · Euro Truck Simulator 2 Free Download PC game pre-installed Updated download SteamRIP.com Euro Truck Simulator 2 direct installing SteamRIP Euro Truck Simulator 2 Download Travel across …
https://steamrip.com/euro-truck-simulator-2-free-download-1i…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.