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Knowledge Attitute And Behaviours Of Doctors On Euthanasia In The Abidinpasa Primary Health Care Area
Deniz ÇALIŞKAN*, Oya ÖZDEMİR**, Recep AKDUR***
* Yrd.Doç.Dr., Ankara Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Halk Sağlığı AD,** Uz.Dr., Ankara Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Halk Sağlığı AD,*** Prof.Dr., Ankara Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Halk Sağlığı AD, ANKARA
Objective: This study is to determine the knowledge, attitude and behaviors of doctors providing health services in primary health care centers towards euthanasia practices (passive euthanasia, voluntary active euthanasia, physician assisted euthanasia).Method: 83 doctors working in the Abidinpasa Primary Health Care Area have participated in the study.The questionnaire has identified passive, voluntary active and physician assisted euthanasia and asked the doctors if they agreed, disagreed and undecided. Then they were given three options: "morally wrong", "should not be legal" and "I would be willing to participate", for the three types of euthanasia and asked if they agreed, disagreed or undecided on these options.Results: 45.8% of the participant doctors were males and 54.2% females. The average age was 33±1 and average time worked was 9±1 years and average time they spent in Ankara was 5±1 years. While 20.5% of doctors supported passive euthanasia, the percentage dropped to 7.2% and 6.0% for the physician assisted euthanasia and voluntary active euthanasia. 49.4% of doctors find passive euthanasia morally wrong while the ratio increased to 73.4 and 78.3% for physician assisted and voluntary euthanasia. Only 54.2 % of doctors think that the passive euthanasia shouldn't be legal while physician assisted and voluntary active euthanasia attracted more opposition (62.5 and 67.5%, respectively). Only 9.6% of doctors are willing to participate in passive and physician assisted euthanasia and 8.4% to voluntary active euthanasia. 25.3% of doctors believe they are well informed about euthanasia and media (27.7%) is the main source of information for doctors.Conclusion: Passive euthanasia is found to be more acceptable than physician assisted and voluntary active euthanasia. Less than 10% of doctors would be willing participants in any type of euthanasia. Doctors working in the Abidinpasa Primary Health Care Area believe they are unlikely to meet euthanasia cases and only quarter of the doctors believe that they are well informed about euthanasia. Generally, doctors working in primary health care are not taken as priority group to be educated in euthanasia. However, as a main health care provider for the society especially in health education and protective health services, these doctors should be given the priority in euthanasia education. The main source of education should be under and post graduate education rather than the mediaKeywords: Euthanasia, Passive Euthanasia, Voluntary Euthanasia, Physician Assisted Euthanasia, Primary Health Care Center, PhysicianTurkiye Klinikleri J Med Ethics-Hukuku-Tarihi 2003, 11:91-101
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