Prehospital Care of End-of-Life Patients by the Strasbourg Mobile Emergency and Resuscitation Service: A Qualitative Study of Healthcare Professionals' Experiences and Use of a Comfort Care Booklet

Prehospital end-of-life care presents complex clinical, ethical, relational, and organizational challenges for healthcare professionals working in the Strasbourg Mobile Emergency and Resuscitation Service (SMUR). A comfort care booklet was introduced in the service in March 2025 to harmonize practices and improve the quality of palliative care delivered in the prehospital setting. However, professionals' experiences, perceptions of the booklet, its perceived impact on practice, and their needs have not yet been explored. This qualitative descriptive study will explore the experiences, perceptions, and needs of SMUR healthcare professionals regarding prehospital end-of-life care and the implementation of the comfort care booklet. Individual semi-structured face-to-face interviews will be conducted, audio-recorded, transcribed anonymously, and analyzed using an inductive thematic approach. Approximately 12 to 20 participants will be recruited through purposive sampling, with recruitment continuing until data saturation is reached.