End-of-life issues: A survey of English-Speaking canadian nurses in AIDS care
Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS CarePublished 1 March 1998
Michael G. Young, Rüssel D. Ogden
Citations21
SJR quartileQ1
SJR score0.57
SNIP0.54
Generate an AI Snapshot to get a quick, structured summary of this paper.
Study Snapshot
ObjectiveStudy objective
MethodsResearch methodology
PopulationPopulation studied
Sample sizeSample sizes
OutcomesStudy outcomes here
ResultsStudy results comes here
LimitationsResearch study limitations comes here
A concise AI-generated summary of the paper will appear here once you click Generate AI Snapshot.
TL;DR
Given that ethical codes for Canadian nurses promote client self-determination and that nurses are the largest group of care providers for the terminally ill, the profession must promote discussion and research if it is to take a leadership role with respect to end-of-life issues.
Abstract
This anonymous postal survey explored attitudes and experiences concerning end-of-life decisions. Respondents were English-speaking members of the Canadian Association for Nurses in AIDS Care (CANAC) and other nurses identified as working primarily in HIV/AIDS settings. Seventy-three percent believed that the law should be changed to allow physicians to practice voluntary euthanasia (VE) and assisted suicide (AS). Fifty-three percent indicated that nurses should be allowed to practice VE and AS. Although VE and AS are illegal, fewer than one in five nurses would report a colleague whom they knew to be involved in such acts. More than one in five nurses have received requests from patients to hasten their deaths by VE. Nearly 98% believe that the nursing profession should be involved in policy development concerning VE and AS, and nearly 78% believe that nurses should be involved in the decision-making process with patients if such acts were legal. Given that ethical codes for Canadian nurses promote client self-determination and that nurses are the largest group of care providers for the terminally ill, the profession must promote discussion and research if it is to take a leadership role with respect to end-of-life issues.
Keywords
MedicineHealth Professions
Computers Environment and Urban SystemsQuestions and answers in attitude surveys: Experiments on question form, wording, and context
1,739 Citations1990
The LancetEuthanasia and other medical decisions concerning the end of life
743 Citations1991P.J. van der Maas, Johannes J. M. van Delden +2 more
This article presents the first results of the Dutch nationwide study on euthanasia and other medical decisions concerning the end of life (MDEL) and concludes that these decisions are common medical practice and should get more attention in research, teaching, and public debate.
JAMAPhysician-assisted suicide and euthanasia in Washington State. Patient requests and physician responses
263 Citations1996Anthony L. Back
The frequency of explicit patient requests for physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia reported by physicians and individual case descriptions of patient characteristics, physician perceptions of patient concerns, and physician responses to patient requests are described.
New England Journal of MedicineThe Role of Critical Care Nurses in Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide
249 Citations1996David A. Asch
As public debate continues about euthanasia and assisted suicide, some critical care nurses in the United States are engaging in the practice.
New England Journal of MedicineAttitudes toward Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia among Physicians in Washington State
236 Citations1994Jonathan S. Cohen, Stephan D. Fihn +3 more
A slight majority of physicians in Washington State favors legalizing physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia in at least some situations, but most would be unwilling to participate in these practices themselves.
JAMAPhysician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in Washington State
177 Citations1996Anthony L. Back
The frequency of explicit patient requests for physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia reported by physicians and individual case descriptions of patient characteristics, physician perceptions of patient concerns, and physician responses to patient requests are described.
BMJAttitudes among NHS doctors to requests for euthanasia
152 Citations1994Barbara J. Ward, P Tate
NHS doctors' attitudes to competent patients' requests for euthanasia are explored and the proportion of doctors who have taken active steps to hasten a patient's death is estimated.
Archives of Internal MedicineLimits of patient autonomy. Physician attitudes and practices regarding life-sustaining treatments and euthanasia
121 Citations1993Terri R. Fried
The Medical Journal of AustraliaDoctors' practices and attitudes regarding voluntary euthanasia
117 Citations1988Helga Kuhse, Peter Singer
A survey of the attitudes and practices of doctors in Victoria with respect to requests for active help in dying from patients who were suffering from a terminal or incurable disease indicates that a clear majority of those who responded to the questionnaire support active voluntary euthanasia.
The Medical Journal of AustraliaEuthanasia: attitudes and practices of medical practitioners
106 Citations1994Peter Baume, E O'Malley
To record doctors' attitudes towards, and practice of, active voluntary euthanasia (AVE) and physician‐assisted suicide (PAS) in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.
Perspectives in biology and medicineWhen Death Is Sought: Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in the Medical Context (review)
70 Citations1995Christine K. Cassel
The book describes arguments from the perspective of law and ethics, as well as laying out a good background of the epidemiology of suicide, with concentration on special patient populations such as those with cancer or AIDS and the elderly.
International Journal of Nursing StudiesVoluntary euthanasia and the nurse: an Australian survey
69 Citations1993Helga Kuhse, Peter Singer
A survey of the attitudes and practices of nurses in Victoria with regard to requests for active or passive help in dying from patients who were suffering from a terminal or incurable disease indicates that a clear majority of those who responded to the questionnaire support active voluntary euthanasia.
Archives of Internal MedicineLimits of Patient Autonomy
69 Citations1993Terri R. Fried
Investigation of physician attitudes and behaviors about end-of-life decisions by means of a questionnaire posed five hypothetical scenarios in which an elderly, competent, terminally ill patient made a request that could result in the patient's death.
The Hastings Center ReportThe Least Worst Death
63 Citations1983Margaret P. Battin
The realities of "natural" death and the alternative of a least worst death are explored in this article about the dilemmas faced by terminally ill patients and their doctors.
PubMedOncology nurses' attitudes regarding voluntary, physician-assisted dying for competent, terminally ill patients.
60 Citations1993Anne Young, Deborah L. Volker +2 more
Findings indicate that oncology nurses hold diverse views regarding the acceptability of PAD, and given that PAD is an ethical and legal issue in the United States for terminally ill patients, nurses are encouraged to become informed about the concept and be prepared to actively respond to the policy-making ramifications of the assisted-death movement.
PubMedAlberta euthanasia survey: 1. Physicians' opinions about the morality and legalization of active euthanasia.
56 Citations1993Thomas Kinsella, MJ Verhoef
This survey revealed severely disparate opinions among Alberta physicians about the morality of active euthanasia, and religious affiliation and activity were associated with the polarized opinions.
New England Journal of MedicineEuthanasia and Nursing Practice — Right Question, Wrong Answer
36 Citations1996Colleen Scanlon
In an era of unprecedented technological progress and postponement of delay, assisted suicide and euthanasia has led to intense debate, controversy, and confusion.
AIDS CareEuthanasia, assisted suicide and AIDS
34 Citations1995H-M. Laane
Examination of the existing data on suicide and euthanasia in relation to HIV in Amsterdam finds that in Amsterdam euthanasia and assisted suicide among PWAs is seen relatively frequently, considerably more frequently than among patients with other diseases.
The LancetEuthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in homosexual men with AIDS
33 Citations1996Pje Bindels, Anneke Krol +5 more
The findings indicate that euthanasia and other MDEL did little to shorten life; rather, they were an extreme form of palliation, applied in the terminal phase of a lethal disease.
PubMedAlberta Euthanasia Survey: 3-year follow-up.
28 Citations1996MJ Verhoef, Thomas Kinsella
Alberta physicians' support for the practice and legalization of active euthanasia decreased considerably between 1991 and 1994, however, most physicians remain in favour of restrictingactive euthanasia, if it were legalized, to the medical profession.
The British Journal of Social WorkEuthanasia and Assisted Suicide: A Survey of Registered Social Workers in British Columbia
26 Citations1998Rüssel D. Ogden, Michael G. Young
This anonymous postal survey explores the attitudes and experiences concerning voluntary euthanasia (VE) and assisted suicide (AS) held by professionally registered members of the British Columbia Association of Social Workers.
Death StudiesRational suicide reconsidered: Aids as an impetus for change
21 Citations1995James L. Werth
By forcing professionals to think about and deal with the issue of rational suicide, AIDS may provide an impetus to change the traditional absolutist approach to suicide intervention and prevention into a contextual approach in which the intensity of suicide intervention required is viewed as varying along a continuum.
PubMedAlberta euthanasia survey: 2. Physicians' opinions about the acceptance of active euthanasia as a medical act and the reporting of such practice.
17 Citations1993Marja J. Verhoef, Thomas Kinsella
This survey about active euthanasia revealed profound incongruities in the opinions of the sample of Alberta physicians concerning their ethical and social duties in the practice of medicine, highlighting the need for relevant modifications of health education policies concerning biomedical ethics and physicians' obligations to society.
PubMedWhen is it right to die?
7 Citations1995Jeff Ericksen, Patricia Rodney +1 more
Advances in technology and the increased awareness and activism of health care consumers have brought a heightened focus to the ethical questions associated with end-of-life decision-making in health care.
PubMedEuthanasia: mercy, morals and medicine.
3 Citations1995Van Weel H
To participate fully in this debate on euthanasia it is essential that nurses examine their own beliefs, determine how they concur or conflict with their role as client advocates, and how they apply to this issue.