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End-of-life care refers to care for people in decline who are deemed to be terminal or dying in the foreseeable (near) future. Several studies revealed substantial differences in the practice of life support treatment that were attributed to personal, institutional, cultural, legal and economic factors.

This study aimed to investigate physicians’ attitude toward end of life care and the reported practice in adult ICUs in Ain Shams University Hospitals, Cairo, Egypt.

This survey study included 100 physicians working in adult ICUs in Ain Shams University Hospitals, Cairo. Although most of the participants reported daily care of terminally ill patients, 69% of them reported absence of definite policy for limitation of life-sustaining therapy in their ICUs. Participants’ attitudes and reported practice were very different from those reported in western countries.

This study revealed the need for establishing clear guidelines that comply with our Islamic culture.