Physician Attitudes Toward Palliative Care at a Community Teaching Hospital

The goals of the study were to explore physicians' attitudes and opinions about palliative care and its implementation. Four focus groups composed of attending physicians were conducted by a professional facilitator at a community teaching hospital. The audio-tapes of the groups were carefully transcribed and analyzed according to rigorous qualitative methodology. Physicians perceived palliative care and pain control as important. Problems they perceived were a lack of education for physicians, residents, other health care professionals, and the general public; a lack of hospital support systems to implement palliative care appropriately, and a lack of knowledge and support regarding legal considerations. They believed that a palliative care unit was a reasonable tool to overcome many obstacles to good end-of-life care.