# Misconception between palliative care and euthanasia among Thai general practitioners: a cross-sectional study

## TL;DR

This study finds that many Thai general practitioners confuse palliative care with euthanasia, which could affect their confidence in providing palliative care.

## Contribution

The study quantifies misconceptions about palliative care and euthanasia among Thai physicians and explores their relationship with knowledge and confidence.

## Key findings

- About 41% of general physicians had misconceptions between palliative care and euthanasia.
- Higher knowledge was associated with fewer misconceptions (p = 0.01).
- Lack of misconceptions weakly correlated with higher confidence in practicing palliative care.

## Abstract

Palliative care lower medical expenses and enhances quality of life, but misconception with euthanasia delays timely care and makes inappropriate patient management.

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.

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.

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).

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.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12904-024-01430-6.