Last updated on June 29th, 2017 at 09:49 am
End of life care in the UK is not only falling short, it is subjecting people to unnecessary suffering at the end of their lives. In fact, Macmillan Cancer Support has previously called for reforms in social care to “allow people their dying wish to stay at home, as well as reduce expensive, unnecessary admissions to hospital.”
Dying Matters wants to encourage people to talk openly about their wishes and end of life planning – to have “the big conversation” – and for there to be high quality end of life care services involving all health care providers as well as families and loved ones so that they can have greater control over their end of life care.
The Dying Matters website provides useful information:
- Aimed at people approaching the end of their life and their carers, relatives and friends.
- About what to expect during end of life care and the things you may want to think about, including where you would like to be cared for.
- Guidance and advice around letting your family know what you want at the end of life, including information about your rights and choices when it comes to the treatment you do or don’t want.
- For carers, friends and relatives, there is information on what happens at the end of life, advice on talking to and help with what to do after a death and coping with a rights and choices when it comes bereavement.
On 24 March 2016 the first palliative and end of life care awards organised by the NCPC recognised four winners:
- Bereavement Project of the Year went to St Giles Hospice
- Dying Matters Awareness Initiative of the Year went to The Pushing Up Daisies festival
- End of Life Care Champion of the Year, went to CoSI, a collaborative model of care for people at home with deteriorating health in the last weeks of their lives.
- Effective Coordination of Care Award went to St Helena Hospice for a 24-hour telephone triage and rapid response system across North East Essex.
