Assessing Relationships Between Muslim Physicians' Religiosity and End-of-Life Health-Care Attitudes and Treatment Recommendations: An Exploratory National Survey. Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2019 Sep;36(9):780-788
Date
03/01/2019Pubmed ID
30813738DOI
10.1177/1049909119833335Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85062454085 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 8 CitationsAbstract
BACKGROUND: Research demonstrates that the attitudes of religious physicians toward end-of-life care treatment can differ substantially from their nonreligious colleagues. While there are various religious perspectives regarding treatment near the end of life, the attitudes of Muslim physicians in this area are largely unknown.
OBJECTIVE: This article attempts to fill in this gap by presenting American Muslim physician attitudes toward end-of-life care decision-making and by examining associations between physician religiosity and these attitudes.
METHODS: A randomized national sample of 626 Muslim physicians completed a mailed questionnaire assessing religiosity and end-of-life care attitudes. Religiosity, religious practice, and bioethics resource utilization were analyzed as predictors of quality-of-life considerations, attitudes regarding withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment, and end-of-life treatment recommendations at the bivariate and multivariable level.
RESULTS: Two-hundred fifty-five (41% response rate) respondents completed surveys. Most physicians reported that religion was either very or the most important part of their life (89%). Physicians who reported consulting Islamic bioethics literature more often had higher odds of recommending active treatment over hospice care in an end-of-life case vignette. Physicians who were more religious had higher odds of viewing withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment more ethically and psychologically challenging than withholding it and had lower odds of agreeing that one should always comply with a competent patient's request to withdraw life-sustaining treatment.
DISCUSSION: Religiosity appears to impact Muslim physician attitudes toward various aspects of end-of-life health-care decision-making. Greater research is needed to evaluate how this relationship manifests itself in patient care conversations and shared clinical decision-making in the hospital.
Author List
Duivenbode R, Hall S, Padela AIAuthor
Aasim Padela MD Vice Chair, Professor in the Emergency Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdultAged
Attitude of Health Personnel
Decision Making
Ethics, Medical
Female
Health Resources
Humans
Islam
Male
Middle Aged
Patient Care Planning
Physicians
Quality of Life
Spirituality
Terminal Care
United States
Withholding Treatment
