Research Article

Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye

Volume: 16 Number: 3 September 28, 2026
TR EN

Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye

Abstract

Aim: Our study aimed to determine the attitudes of physicians and nurses in Türkiye towards end-of-life decisions and to identify the factors influencing these attitudes. Method: The study is quantitative and cross-sectional. The socio-demographic data form we prepared for the research and the end-of-life decisions scale were used after obtaining the necessary permissions and conducting validity and reliability analyses. Findings: 870 physicians and nurses participated in the study. Age, gender, marital status, and having children were found to be important and statistically significant (p≤0.05) socio-demographic variables in terms of perceptions, beliefs, and practices regarding end-of-life decisions. While the variables of education, professional factors, unit of employment, and income level were found to be variables with no statistically significant difference (p>0.005) in terms of perceptions, beliefs, and practices regarding end-of-life decisions. It was determined that 1.6% of the participants had an advanced directive, 83.2% needed additional training on the subject, 46.7% had initiated discussions about end-of-life decisions at least once, 43.7% thought that physicians should initiate discussions about end-of-life decisions, and 41.8% thought that patients should initiate them. Conclusion: Our research results reveal a serious need for training among healthcare professionals on this subject, the necessity of implementing advance directives, and the importance of Hospital Ethics Committees. It is crucial that relevant institutions identify the needs in this area and act accordingly.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

For this study, ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee for Non-Interventional Clinical Research at Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University on January 2, 2019, under reference number GO2019/1.

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

General Practice

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

September 28, 2026

Submission Date

April 9, 2026

Acceptance Date

July 1, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 16 Number: 3

APA
Say Sahin, D., & Örnek Büken, N. (2026). Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye. Lokman Hekim Dergisi, 16(3), 776-790. https://doi.org/10.31020/mutftd.1926499
AMA
1.Say Sahin D, Örnek Büken N. Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye. Lokman Hekim Dergisi. 2026;16(3):776-790. doi:10.31020/mutftd.1926499
Chicago
Say Sahin, Deniz, and Nüket Örnek Büken. 2026. “Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye”. Lokman Hekim Dergisi 16 (3): 776-90. https://doi.org/10.31020/mutftd.1926499.
EndNote
Say Sahin D, Örnek Büken N (September 1, 2026) Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye. Lokman Hekim Dergisi 16 3 776–790.
IEEE
[1]D. Say Sahin and N. Örnek Büken, “Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye”, Lokman Hekim Dergisi, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 776–790, Sept. 2026, doi: 10.31020/mutftd.1926499.
ISNAD
Say Sahin, Deniz - Örnek Büken, Nüket. “Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye”. Lokman Hekim Dergisi 16/3 (September 1, 2026): 776-790. https://doi.org/10.31020/mutftd.1926499.
JAMA
1.Say Sahin D, Örnek Büken N. Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye. Lokman Hekim Dergisi. 2026;16:776–790.
MLA
Say Sahin, Deniz, and Nüket Örnek Büken. “Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye”. Lokman Hekim Dergisi, vol. 16, no. 3, Sept. 2026, pp. 776-90, doi:10.31020/mutftd.1926499.
Vancouver
1.Deniz Say Sahin, Nüket Örnek Büken. Attitudes of Physicians and Nurses Regarding End-of-Life Decisions in Türkiye. Lokman Hekim Dergisi. 2026 Sep. 1;16(3):776-90. doi:10.31020/mutftd.1926499

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                                                                  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

  

                                    Periodical scientific publication of Mersin University School of Medicine. Can not be cited without reference. Responsibility of the articles belong to the authors

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