An approach to Euthanasia: a descriptive-analytical study from the doctors’ point of view

Raiyatdost, Esmail; Maleki, Fatemeh; Foroughian, Mahdi; Taghipour, Nikta; Kalani, Navid; Shojaei, Mohamad

doi:10.22038/hmed.2019.44510.1006

An approach to Euthanasia: a descriptive-analytical study from the doctors’ point of view

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Esmail Raiyatdost ¹

Fatemeh Maleki ²

Mahdi Foroughian ³

Nikta Taghipour ⁴

Navid Kalani ⁵

Mohamad Shojaei ⁵

¹ 1Department of Emergency Medicine, Jahrom University of Medical sciences, Jahrom, Iran.

² 2Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Birjand University of Medical sciences, Birjand, Iran.

³ Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical sciences, Mashhad, Iran

⁴ Student Research Committee, Jahrom University of Medical Sciences, Jahrom, Iran.

⁵ Research center for social Determinants of Health, Jahrom University of Medical Sciences, Jahrom, Iran

10.22038/hmed.2019.44510.1006

Abstract

Introduction:The rise of chronic and incurable diseases on the one hand and the development of medical technology and new equipment on the other hand presents many ethical challenges to the medical team. One of these challenges is euthanasia or euthanasia. The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of physicians regarding euthanasia.
Materials & Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study which was performed on 55 physicians working in medical centers of Jahrom in 2019. Data were collected using demographic form and euthanasia attitude scale (EAS) and analyzed by SPSS 24 software using descriptive and inferential statistics.
Results: 27 (62.8%) of the physicians participating in the study were male and 28 (65.1%) were married. On average, they also had a work experience of 3.86 ±2.59 years, with 77.8% having 5 years or less. The mean score of total attitudes toward euthanasia and dimensions of ethical considerations and appreciation for life were above average (p<0.05). Also, there was no significant statistical relationship between attitudes toward euthanasia and demographic characteristics in physicians.
Conclusion:The results of this study showed that physicians' attitudes toward euthanasia, ethical considerations and life esteem are moderate.

Keywords

Euthanasia

Attitude :Physicians