Attitudes toward physician-assisted suicide among physicians in Vermont

BACKGROUND: Legislation on physician-assisted suicide (PAS) is being considered in a number of states since the passage of the Oregon Death With Dignity Act in 1994. Opinion assessment surveys have historically assessed particular subsets of physicians. OBJECTIVE: To determine variables predictive of physicians' opinions on PAS in a rural state, Vermont, USA. DESIGN: Cross-sectional mailing survey. PARTICIPANTS: 1052 (48% response rate) physicians licensed by the state of Vermont. RESULTS: Of the respondents, 38.2% believed PAS should be legalised, 16.0% believed it should be prohibited and 26.0% believed it should not be legislated. 15.7% were undecided. Males were more likely than females to favour legalisation (42% vs 34%). Physicians who did not care for patients through the end of life were significantly more likely to favour legalisation of PAS than physicians who do care for patients with terminal illness (48% vs 33%). 30% of the respondents had experienced a request for assistance with suicide. CONCLUSIONS: Vermont physicians' opinions on the legalisation of PAS is sharply polarised. Patient autonomy was a factor strongly associated with opinions in favour of legalisation, whereas the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship was strongly associated with opinions in favour of not legislating PAS. Those in favour of making PAS illegal overwhelmingly cited moral and ethical beliefs as factors in their opinion. Although opinions on legalisation appear to be based on firmly held beliefs, approximately half of Vermont physicians who responded to the survey agree that there is a need for more education in palliative care and pain management.