Nursing staff and euthanasia in the Netherlands. A nation-wide survey on attitudes and involvement in decision making and the performance of euthanasia.

Autor: Francke AL; NIVEL-Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Expertise Center for Palliative Care Amsterdam, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: a.francke@nivel.nl., Albers G; Federation Palliative Care Flanders, Vilvoorde, Belgium., Bilsen J; Mental Health and Wellbeing Research Group, Department of Public Health, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium., de Veer AJ; NIVEL-Netherlands Institute of Health Services Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: a.deveer@nivel.nl., Onwuteaka-Philipsen BD; Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Expertise Center for Palliative Care Amsterdam, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Patient education and counseling [Patient Educ Couns] 2016 May; Vol. 99 (5), pp. 783-9. Date of Electronic Publication: 2015 Nov 21.
DOI: 10.1016/j.pec.2015.11.008
Abstrakt: Objectives: To give insight into Dutch nursing staff's attitudes and involvement regarding euthanasia.
Methods: The sample was recruited from a nation-wide existent research panel of registered nurses and certified nursing assistants. Descriptive analyses and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed.
Results: 587 respondents (response of 65%) completed the questionnaire. The majority (83%) state that physicians have to discuss the decision about euthanasia with the nurses involved. Besides, 69% state that a physician should discuss a euthanasia request with nurses who have regular contact with a patient. Nursing staff who have religious or other beliefs that they consider important for their attitude towards end-of-life decisions, and staff working in a hospital or home care, are most likely to have this opinion. Being present during the euthanasia is quite unusual: only a small group (7%) report that this has ever been the case in their entire working life. Seven% (incorrectly) think they are allowed to administer the lethal drugs.
Conclusion: The majority want to be involved in decision-making processes about euthanasia. Not all are aware that they are not legally allowed to administer the lethal drugs.
Practice Implications: Nursing staff should be informed of relevant existing legislation and professional guidelines.
(Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
Externí odkaz: