a doctor knowing that I would

have to kill people. Therefore,

I do not think I could be the

one who actually killed

somebody. That would be a

step too far”. Waqas Arshad-Arshad, Waqas, et al. “The First Year of Assisted Dying in New Zealand through the Lens of

Healthcare Professionals Not Directly Involved in the Process.” BMC Palliative Care,

vol. 24, no. 1, July 2025, pp. 1–8. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-025-0183 8-

8.

able to present it (assisted

dying) as an option in a non-

judgemental way”-Arshad Waqas

and he wanted euthanasia and

she didn’t want it [for him]. So,

we had to go into a kind of

discussion with her and her

husband. We decided on doing

palliative sedation, because that

was acceptable for her because

then she could let him go while

he was sleeping. (. . .) And for

him that was acceptable too, if you assured him that he

wouldn’t be suffering or have

pain. (. . .) That it could take

him some days didn’t matter

that much, but he really wanted

to be asleep and not be there

anymore awake (Physician 5

Flanders).”

- Koksvik GH, Richards N, Gerson SM, Materstvedt LJ, Clark D. Medicalization, suffering and

control at the end of life: The interplay of deep continuous palliative sedation and assisted dying.

Health. 2020;26(4):512-531. doi:10.1177/1363459320976746

that time-window for closure.

That time window is guaranteed

(. . .) There is a number of cases

reported in [the] news in

Belgium that were not

terminally ill but they still

created that time-window (. . .)

that they filled in with closure

of life (Professional 1

Flanders).”-Koksvik GH, Richards N, Gerson SM, Materstvedt LJ, Clark D. Medicalization, suffering and

control at the end of life: The interplay of deep continuous palliative sedation and assisted dying.

Health. 2020;26(4):512-531. doi:10.1177/1363459320976746

to alleviate uncontrollable

suffering most commonly

caused by delirium, dyspnoea

or pain.”-Koksvik GH, Richards N, Gerson SM, Materstvedt LJ, Clark D. Medicalization, suffering and

control at the end of life: The interplay of deep continuous palliative sedation and assisted dying.

Health. 2020;26(4):512-531. doi:10.1177/1363459320976746

repeatedly finds support for the idea of a

‘dignified death’, the premise being that a

person’s dignity depends on his or her

ability to maintain autonomy and control”-Rodríguez-Prat, Andrea et al. “Patient Perspectives of Dignity, Autonomy and

Control at the End of Life: Systematic Review and Meta-Ethnography.” PloS one vol.

11,3 e0151435. 24 Mar. 2016, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151435

suffering manifested as the expectation that

the future would bring unbearable physical,

emotional or existential pain.”-Rodríguez-Prat, Andrea et al. “Patient Perspectives of Dignity, Autonomy and

Control at the End of Life: Systematic Review and Meta-Ethnography.” PloS one vol.

11,3 e0151435. 24 Mar. 2016, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151435

humiliating and as an intrusion into one’s

privacy. Some patients expressed their fear

of becoming a financial burden on the

family, and, especially, of requiring kinds of

help that they would never have wished to

need”-Rodríguez-Prat, Andrea et al. “Patient Perspectives of Dignity, Autonomy and

Control at the End of Life: Systematic Review and Meta-Ethnography.” PloS one vol.

11,3 e0151435. 24 Mar. 2016, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151435

watch somebody suffer. To be

short of breath, be in pain, to

be agitated. And continuous

palliative sedation is a nice

way to go. It’s a good death.

(P3, nurse)”-Guité-Verret, A., Boivin, J., Hanna, A.M.R. et al. Continuous palliative sedation until

death: a qualitative study of palliative care clinicians’ experiences. BMC Palliat Care 23, 104

(2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01426-2

symptoms. We tried so many

different interventions to

alleviate all the different

symptoms the patient was

experiencing, and it was really

rough getting the sedation

going. And they suffered, and

there was a lot of screaming. It

was upsetting other patients

because they were in so much

agony. It distressed the staff, it

distressed everybody. (P13,

physician)”-Guité-Verret, A., Boivin, J., Hanna, A.M.R. et al. Continuous palliative sedation until

death: a qualitative study of palliative care clinicians’ experiences. BMC Palliat Care 23, 104

(2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01426-2

“Well, so let me get this

straight. As far as I’m

concerned, both of them are

the same. I go to sleep and I

die in my sleep. Sedation, you

could do it this afternoon,

right? I want that one.” And

these are for patients who have

limited prognoses. So, I think

the cultural acceptance, which

in turn, influences patients but also our willingness to discuss

it and our competency in

discussing it. (P2, physician)"-Guité-Verret, A., Boivin, J., Hanna, A.M.R. et al. Continuous palliative sedation until

death: a qualitative study of palliative care clinicians’ experiences. BMC Palliat Care 23, 104

(2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-024-01426-2

mind where they know they have the option because

even though with medicine with the way that we

have it, there is still a huge fear that people feeling

they will die suffering and so even though they don’t

use it, it is good for them to know that it is available

to them. (P1)."

“Hospice Care Providers Experiences of Grappling with Medical

Assistance in Dying in a Hospice Setting: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.”-Freeman, Shannon, et al. “Hospice Care Providers Experiences of Grappling with Medical

Assistance in Dying in a Hospice Setting: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.” BMC

Palliative Care, vol. 20, no. 1, Apr. 2021, pp. 1–12. EBSCOhost,

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12904-021-00740-3.