ABSTRACT
Background Palliative sedation, or bringing
about a state of decreased or absent awareness
(unconsciousness), is one of the therapies used
in end-of-life healthcare settings in order to
manage refractory symptoms such as pain,
dyspnoea and distress. It is intended to relieve
the burden of intolerable suffering of patients
who are in the process of dying. Nurses are
centrally involved in the utilisation of palliative
sedation in end-of-life care; however, there is
minimal research available in relation to their
experiences in this regard. The dearth of research
prompted this study.
Aim To explore the experiences of palliative care
nurses in the utilisation of palliative sedation in
end-of-life care.
Methodology A descriptive phenomenological
methodology was adopted involving
unstructured interviews. A purposive sample was
used of 10 palliative care nurses with at least
1 year’s experience of working in a hospice
setting in Ireland. The data were analysed using
Colaizzi’s seven-stage phenomenological
method.
Findings Data analysis led to the identification
of four core themes: (1) information sharing, (2)
timing of palliative sedation, (3) level of sedation
and (4) palliative sedation as a last resort. The
results indicate that the participants were
generally satisfied with the processes that
underpinned decisions to introduce palliative
sedation. They saw it as a highly complex
intervention, in part because it involved
individuals with very complex conditions and
symptoms.
Conclusions Palliative care patients, families and
the general public in Ireland need to have
greater understanding of the role of palliative
sedation in the treatment of refractory symptoms
at the end of life.