‘I think it's wrong, but it helps'–a focused ethnography of benzodiazepine practices in specialist palliative care

Benzodiazepines are a class of drug extensively used in palliative care. Their use has predominantly been studied within a biomedical framework. Our study instead focused on the sociocultural aspects of benzodiazepine practices. We aimed to explore clinicians, patients and family members’ values, beliefs, knowledge and feelings regarding use of benzodiazepines, including in-situ clinical decision-making processes, affects and actions. Social theory understandings of affect, the body and of suffering provided the theoretical lens through which data were analysed. Analysis generated the following themes: (1) A special specialty; (2) The suffering body and the moral imperative to ‘settle; (3) The liminal body–living and dying; and (4) Organizational realities. Use of benzodiazepines were largely governed by social and moral norms, cultural expectations and organizational realities as part of affective assemblages of care.