A family affair: Repeated interviews with people with dementia and a euthanasia wish and their families

This study examines the reasons of people with dementia request euthanasia and how thesereasons change over time with a special focus on reasons related to family. In addition, itexamines how family relates to their loved one’s euthanasia wish. Seven people with dementiaand a euthanasia wish in the Netherlands were interviewed, and three years later, two ofthem and five family members were interviewed again. Four themes were identified usingthematic analyses: (1) Protecting the relationship from the impact of dementia; (2) Privatedomain as the primary setting to discuss euthanasia; (3) Implicit expectation to respect andagree with the euthanasia wish; (4) Experienced responsibilities of family regarding theeuthanasia wish. Professionals should be aware of the position of family and theinterrelatedness of the person’s concern for family happiness and families’ moral commitmentto agree and support the wish.