title: Attitudes Regarding Palliative Sedation and Death Hastening Among Swiss Physicians: A Contextually Sensitive Approach.
abstract: In Switzerland, where assisted suicide but not euthanasia is permitted, the authors sought to understand how physicians integrate palliative sedation in their practice and how they reflect on existential suffering and death hastening. They interviewed 31 physicians from different care settings. Five major attitudes emerged. Among specialized palliative care physicians, convinced, cautious and doubtful attitudes were evident. Within unspecialized settings, palliative sedation was more likely to be considered as death hastening: clinicians either avoid it with an inexperienced attitude or practice it with an ambiguous attitude, raising the issue of unskilled and abusive uses of sedatives at the end of life.
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Health Research , University of Health Sciences (HESAV, HES-SO) , Lausanne , Switzerland.
authors.forename: Rose-Anna
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Foley
authors.forename: Wendy S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: Mathieu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bernard
authors.forename: Michela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Canevascini
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Currat
authors.forename: Gian D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Borasio
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Beauverd
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016292:Procedural Sedation / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology; D005065:Euthanasia / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000523:psychology*; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013557:Switzerland