Summary
The “Dying Matters Awareness Week”, this year having the theme “Talk, Plan, Live”, occurs between May 18th – 24th 2015. The aim is to support more open discussion about dying, death and bereavement. Making end of life wishes known, early on, can be beneficial.
Read more: Dying Matters.
Dying Without Dignity (PHSO)
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s “Dying Without Dignity” report into inadequacies in end-of-life care during the last four years has identified the persistence of poor communication, poor pain management and inadequate out-of-hours services. Too many people still die in hospital (against their wishes), rather than their preferred place of death.
Reference
End-of-life care letting people down – health ombudsman. London: BBC Health News, May 20th 2015.
End-of-Life Care in Acute Hospitals (RCN)
Some nursing guidelines on improving end-of-life care in acute hospitals:
Full Text Link (Note: This article is available free currently, but may soon require a suitable Athens password, a journal subscription or payment for access).
Reference
Oliver, T. [and] O’Connor, SJ. (2015). Perceptions of a “good death” in acute hospitals. Nursing Times. May 20th 2015. Vol.111(21), pp.24-27.