Keywords
Health knowledge
students
palliative care
right to die
How to Cite
Abstract
Introduction: Euthanasia was included in the Colombian Constitution in 2014 as a measure that guarantees the right to a dignified death. Currently, this continues to be a controversial topic that generates diverse opinions and attitudes.
Objective: To explore the knowledge and attitudes that university students have about euthanasia at the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá and at the Universidad Del Cauca in Popayán.
Methods: Cross-sectional study with data obtained through a voluntary electronic survey on euthanasia in university students from two universities. The questionnaire contained questions on: general data, knowledge about euthanasia and opinions based on hypothetical cases.
Results: 758 students participated, 60% of them female, with a mean age of 22 years. 53% of students identified the appropriate definition of euthanasia, 77% would consider applying for euthanasia in hypothetical cases of end-stage disease. A significant proportion confused the definition of euthanasia with that of palliative care.
Conclusions: A lack of knowledge regarding the definition of euthanasia was observed and although it was accepted by most of the study population, our results indicate the need to open spaces for information and dialogue on the subject.
2. Cucalón JM, Marín A, Cía P, Blay MG. Opinión de los universitarios sobre los cuidados al final de la vida. Revista de la Fundación Educación Médica. 2013;16(3):181-6. http://doi.org/10.4321/S2014-98322013000300009
3. Ríos CM, De Benedictis GA, Córdova GJ, Contreras ML, Contreras LV. Conocimiento y percepción sobre eutanasia en estudiantes de medicina de diecisiete países latinoamericanos, 2017. Memorias del Instituto de investigaciones en ciencias de la salud. 2018;16(3):58-65. http://doi.org/10.18004/Mem.iics/1812-9528/2018.016(03)58-065
4. Diccionario de Lengua Española. Eutanasia [Internet]. 34 ed. Real Academia Española. Madrid: RAE; 2014 Fecha de consulta: 28 de abril de 2020. p. 1. Disponible en: https://dle.rae.es/eutanasia
5. Hurtado MJ. La eutanasia en Colombia desde una perspectiva bioética. Revista Médica de Risaralda. 2015;21(2):1. http://dx.doi.org/10.22517/25395203.11081
6. Ley 1733 de 2014. Santafé de Bogotá, D.C: Congreso de la República; 2014.
7. Sentencia C-239/97. Santafé de Bogotá, D.C: Corte Constitucional de Colombia; 1997.
8. Sentencia T-970/14. Santafé de Bogotá, D.C: Corte Constitucional de Colombia; 2014
9. Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social. Protocolo para la aplicación del procedimiento de eutanasia en Colombia 2015. Fecha de Consulta: 28 de abril de 2020. Disponible en: https://www.minsalud.gov.co/sites/rid/Lists/BibliotecaDigital/RIDE/DE/CA/Protocolo-aplicacion-procedimiento-eutanasia-colombia.pdf
10. Organización Mundial de La Salud. Cuidados Paliativos: Datos y Cifras. Fecha de consulta: 28 de abril de 2020. Disponible en: https://www.who.int/es/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/palliative-care
11. Sentencia T-721/17. Santafé de Bogotá, D.C: Corte Constitucional de Colombia; 2017.
12. Rojas D, Sánchez M. Actitudes de estudiantes de la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana hacia la Eutanasia [Tesis de Pregrado en Internet]. Bogotá; 2017 [Fecha de consulta: el 11 de abril de 2020]. Disponible en: https://repository.javeriana.edu.co/handle/10554/35146
13. R Core Team. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Version 3.6.3 [software]. 2018 Citado el 28 de abril de 2020. Disponible en: https://www.R-project.org/.
14. Yildirim JG. Knowledge, Opinions and Behaviors of Senior Nursing Students in Turkey Regarding Euthanasia and Factors in Islam Affecting These. J Relig Health. 2020;59(1):399-415. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00954-z
15. Berrezueta RC, Saquipay JF. Conocimientos y actitudes sobre eutanasia en médicos residentes y tratantes del Hospital José Carrasco Arteaga, Cuenca 2017 [Tesis de Pregrado en Internet]. Cuenca; 2017 [Fecha de consulta: el 11 de abril de 2020]. Disponible en: http://dspace.ucuenca.edu.ec/handle/123456789/28845
16. Rojas KR. Nivel de conocimientos y actitudes acerca de la eutanasia en internos y médicos residentes de cinco hospitales del departamento de Lambayeque en el año 2017 [Tesis de Pregrado en Internet]. Lima; 2015 [Fecha de consulta: el 14 de abril de 2020]. Disponible en: http://repositorio.usmp.edu.pe/handle/usmp/2562
17. Gutierrez A, Gutierrez J. Active and Passive Euthanasia: Current Opinion of Mexican Medical Students. Cureus. 2018;10(7):3–11. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.3047
18. Anneser J, Jox RJ, Thurn T, Borasio GD. Physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia and palliative sedation: attitudes and knowledge of medical students. GMS J Med Educ. 2016;33(1):Doc11. https://doi.org/10.3205/zma001010
19. Abolfazl F, Habidi R, Ghobadi L, Mousavi SR. Prediction of Students' Attitudes toward Euthanasia Using Their Religious Orientation, Self-Esteem and Death Anxiety. Health, Spiritualy and Medical Ethics. 2017;4(3):2-7. https://doaj.org/article/2f37b7153ac443c5895892a080681cef
20. Jacobs RK, Hendricks M. Medical students’ perspectives on euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide and their views on legalising these practices in South Africa. S Afr Med J. 2018;108(6):484-489. https://doi.org/10.7196/SAMJ.2018.v108i6.13089
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2021 Esther De Vries, Mauricio Velásquez, Alejandra Espejo, Felipe Navarrete, Sofìa Robledo, Mariana Salazar, Paula Baquero, Christian Buesaquillo, Laura Arango, Lina Burbano, Luis Andrade, Jose Andrés Calvache