British laypeople's attitudes towards gradual sedation, sedation to unconsciousness and euthanasia at the end of life.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Many patients at the end of life require analgesia to relieve pain. Additionally, up to 1/5 of patients in the UK receive sedation for refractory symptoms at the end of life. The use of sedation in end-of-life care (EOLC) remains controversial. While gradual sedation to alleviate intractable suffering is generally accepted, there is more opposition towards deliberate and rapid sedation to unconsciousness (so-called "terminal anaesthesia", TA). However, the general public's views about sedation in EOLC are not known. We sought to investigate the general public's views to inform policy and practice in the UK.

Methods

We performed two anonymous online surveys of members of the UK public, sampled to be representative for key demographic characteristics (n = 509). Part

SUBMITTER: Takla A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7997648 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature