Fundamental perceptions about palliative care among young generations living in Dhaka city, Bangladesh: A short survey

Abstract

Background: Palliative care is the practical care which seeks toward maximization of quality of life intended for people and families in front of life-threatening illnesses. Though the concept of palliative care is not new, still it is not eminent in Bangladesh. As young generations are future representatives of any society, their basic concepts and knowledge should be clear and broad.Objective: The endeavor of the study was to ascertain the level of basic concepts and knowledge of young generations living in Dhaka city, Bangladesh about palliative care.Method: A cross-sectional survey study of young adults (those are living in Dhaka city, Bangladesh) was conducted from April 2016 to November 2016. Information regarding their knowledge and concepts was collected by self-made questionnaire by literature review.Results: The study was conducted with the total number of 3152 young adults (n = 3152). Among them 55.01% were male and 44.98% were female. It was found that their age range was between 20 and 28 and most of them (n = 1643) were between 23 and 25 years. It was also found that 40.31% knew about the concept of palliative care and 62% of their information source was Internet and 14% from books and 8% from health professionals and 12% from mass media and 4% others. And a larger portion of them which was 59.69%, did not know the concept of palliative care. Among those 40.31% young adults who knew about palliative care, 46% believed their concepts were clear about palliative care and 54% thought their concepts were not clear. And astoundingly 78% assumed that palliative care only deals with cancer patients. It is important to notice in the study that, young males are comparatively more aware then young females.Conclusion: The findings reveal that most of the young adults living in Dhaka city do not have clear concepts and knowledge about palliative care. There should be more awareness-related programs on this aspect.