Ambiguous boundaries: how healthcare professionals interpret tiredness of life in nursing home residents.

OBJECTIVES: Tiredness of Life (ToL) in older adults, especially nursing home residents, is causing increasing societal concern. Although healthcare professionals (HCPs) encounter residents experiencing ToL, scientific research remains scarce. Its relationship to depression or a wish to die is especially unclear. This study explores healthcare professionals' interpretations of tiredness of life and the meanings and boundaries they associate with it. METHOD: Conducted as a qualitative study, data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 32 HCPs from diverse disciplines, including nurses, nurse aides, general practitioners, geriatricians, and psychiatrists, working in Flanders, Belgium. Data was analyzed using the Qualitative Analysis Guide of Leuven (QUAGOL). RESULTS: Healthcare professionals described ToL as a recognizable yet difficult-to-define experience. Divergent interpretations revealed ambiguity in how ToL is perceived within practice. Still, shared associations emerged: a lack of mattering, future perspective and energy. ToL was often linked to a death wish and euthanasia requests, with perceptions shaped by their professional background and views on associated death wishes. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide insights into HCPs' perspectives on ToL. The strong association with death wishes and euthanasia requests underscores the need to examine how these perceptions shape care strategies. Given ToL's existential nature, interdisciplinary collaboration and inclusion of paramedical perspectives seem essential.