title: Nurses' preferred end-of-life treatment choices in five countries.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Previous research has focused on physician's perspectives of end-of-life (EOL) decision making as well as patient and family EOL decision making. There is a lack of research pertaining to the EOL treatment preferences of nurses and especially nurses working in a variety of care settings.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to compare nurses' EOL treatment preferences in Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy and the USA.
  
  
  METHODS
  A comparative descriptive design was used with a convenience sample of nurses (n = 1089). A survey questionnaire using EOL hypothetical clinical case scenarios was used to collect data between June 2011 and July 2012.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Nurses in every country consistently chose a more aggressive option for patients than for themselves or for a parent. The treatment preferences of nurses varied from country to country. Lack of knowledge of patients' wishes and duty of care were the main influencing factors on treatment preferences.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study was limited to the hypothetical nature of the scenarios; however, the study highlights numerous future research questions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study is the first to examine and compare nurses' preferred EOL treatment choices in five countries from three different continents. The findings of this study raise several important questions for healthcare researchers, for policy development, and highlight the need for further international collaboration.
authors: Catherine McAuley School of Nursing and Midwifery, University College Cork. a.coffey@ucc.ie
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Coffey
authors: G
authors: G
authors: McCarthy
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Weathers
authors: M I
authors: MI
authors: Friedman
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Gallo
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Ehrenfeld
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Itzhaki
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Chan
authors: W H C
authors: WH
authors: Li
authors: P
authors: P
authors: Poletti
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Zanotti
authors: D W
authors: DW
authors: Molloy
authors: C
authors: C
authors: McGlade
authors: J J
authors: JJ
authors: Fitzpatrick
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000628:therapy; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D017028:Caregivers; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003657:Decision Making; D006801:Humans; D008020:Life Support Care; D008297:Male; D009729:Nursing; D057240:Patient Preference; D013727:Terminal Care
keywords: Clinical Decision Making; End-of-Life Care; Nursing