Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study
Abstract Background Palliative care lower medical expenses and enhances quality of life, but misconception with euthanasia delays timely care and makes inappropriate patient management. Objective To examine the magnitude of misconceptions between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general pra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2024-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Palliative Care |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01430-6 |
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| author | Lalita Chutarattanakul Viriya Jarusukthavorn Nisachol Dejkriengkraikul Myo Zin Oo Soe Sandi Tint Chaisiri Angkurawaranon Nutchar Wiwatkunupakarn |
| author_facet | Lalita Chutarattanakul Viriya Jarusukthavorn Nisachol Dejkriengkraikul Myo Zin Oo Soe Sandi Tint Chaisiri Angkurawaranon Nutchar Wiwatkunupakarn |
| author_sort | Lalita Chutarattanakul |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Palliative care lower medical expenses and enhances quality of life, but misconception with euthanasia delays timely care and makes inappropriate patient management. Objective To examine the magnitude of misconceptions between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners, explore the association with knowledge, attitudes, and practical experience, and assess the association between misconception and confidence in practicing and referring patients to palliative care centers. Methods All 144 general practitioners who were going to start residency training at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital in 2021 participated in this observational cross-sectional study. A chi-square test was utilized to examine the relationship between misconception and knowledge, attitude, practical experience, confidence to practice, and confidence to refer patients. Multivariable logistic regression was carried out while controlling for age, sex, knowledge, attitude, and experience to examine the relationship between misconception and confidence to practice and refer patients for palliative care. Statistical significance was defined at p < 0.05. Results About 41% of general physicians had misconceptions regarding palliative care and euthanasia. High knowledge was associated with a lower level of misconception (p = 0.01). The absence of misconceptions was weakly associated with a higher level of confidence in practicing palliative care, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.51 (95% confidence interval 0.73 to 3.10, p = 0.07). Conclusion High misconception rates between palliative care and euthanasia among young Thai physicians might impact their confidence in delivering palliative care. Training initiatives for medical students and practitioners can mitigate misconceptions, fostering better palliative care utilization in Thailand. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:47:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-87f2b1c61e3146babe2822c1803369d3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-684X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:47:51Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Palliative Care |
| spelling | doaj.art-87f2b1c61e3146babe2822c1803369d32024-04-14T11:32:42ZengBMCBMC Palliative Care1472-684X2024-04-012311810.1186/s12904-024-01430-6Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional studyLalita Chutarattanakul0Viriya Jarusukthavorn1Nisachol Dejkriengkraikul2Myo Zin Oo3Soe Sandi Tint4Chaisiri Angkurawaranon5Nutchar Wiwatkunupakarn6Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityDepartment of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai UniversityAbstract Background Palliative care lower medical expenses and enhances quality of life, but misconception with euthanasia delays timely care and makes inappropriate patient management. Objective To examine the magnitude of misconceptions between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners, explore the association with knowledge, attitudes, and practical experience, and assess the association between misconception and confidence in practicing and referring patients to palliative care centers. Methods All 144 general practitioners who were going to start residency training at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital in 2021 participated in this observational cross-sectional study. A chi-square test was utilized to examine the relationship between misconception and knowledge, attitude, practical experience, confidence to practice, and confidence to refer patients. Multivariable logistic regression was carried out while controlling for age, sex, knowledge, attitude, and experience to examine the relationship between misconception and confidence to practice and refer patients for palliative care. Statistical significance was defined at p < 0.05. Results About 41% of general physicians had misconceptions regarding palliative care and euthanasia. High knowledge was associated with a lower level of misconception (p = 0.01). The absence of misconceptions was weakly associated with a higher level of confidence in practicing palliative care, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.51 (95% confidence interval 0.73 to 3.10, p = 0.07). Conclusion High misconception rates between palliative care and euthanasia among young Thai physicians might impact their confidence in delivering palliative care. Training initiatives for medical students and practitioners can mitigate misconceptions, fostering better palliative care utilization in Thailand.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01430-6AttitudeConfidenceEuthanasiaKnowledgeMisconceptionPalliative care |
| spellingShingle | Lalita Chutarattanakul Viriya Jarusukthavorn Nisachol Dejkriengkraikul Myo Zin Oo Soe Sandi Tint Chaisiri Angkurawaranon Nutchar Wiwatkunupakarn Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study BMC Palliative Care Attitude Confidence Euthanasia Knowledge Misconception Palliative care |
| title | Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among thai general practitioners a cross sectional study |
| topic | Attitude Confidence Euthanasia Knowledge Misconception Palliative care |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01430-6 |
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