Palliative care physicians' decision-making about palliative sedation for existential suffering: A Belgian nationwide qualitative study.

Objectives: This study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the content and process of decision-making about palliative sedation for existential suffering (PS-ES) as perceived by Belgian palliative care physicians.

Methods: This Belgian nationwide qualitative study follows a . We conducted semistructured interviews with 25 palliative care physicians working in 19 Belgian hospital-based palliative care units and 4 stand-alone hospices.