Life worth living: cross-sectional study on the prevalence and determinants of the wish to die in elderly patients hospitalized in an internal medicine ward

Background Elderly people frequently express the wish to die: this ranges from a simple wish for a natural death to a more explicit request for death. The frequency of the wish to die and its associated factors have not been assessed in acute hospitalization settings. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and determinants of the wish to die in elderly (≥65 years) patients hospitalized in an internal medicine ward. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted between 1 May, 2018, and 30 April, 2019, in an acute care internal medicine ward in a Swiss university hospital. Participants were a consecutive sample of 232 patients (44.8% women, 79.3 ± 8.1 years) with no cognitive impairment. Wish to die was assessed using the Schedule of Attitudes toward Hastened Death-senior and the Categories of Attitudes toward Death Occurrence scales. Results Prevalence of the wish to die was 8.6% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.3–13.0). Bivariate analysis showed that patients expressing the wish to die were older (P = .014), had a lower quality of life (P < .001), and showed more depressive symptoms (P = .044). Multivariable analysis showed that increased age was positively (odds ratio [OR] for a 5-year increase: 1.43, 95% CI 0.99–2.04, P = .048) and quality of life negatively (OR: 0.54, 95% CI 0.39–0.75, P < 0.001) associated with the likelihood of wishing to die. Participants did not experience stress during the interview. Conclusions Prevalence of the wish to die among elderly patients admitted to an acute hospital setting is low, but highly relevant for clinical practice. Older age increases and better quality of life decreases the likelihood of wishing to die. Discussion of death appears to be well tolerated by patients.