Irish Hospitals in Pioneering Study of End-of-Life Care.

National Audit System Unique in Europe

Cork University Hospital & Kerry General Hospital are among the first to join the National Audit

Grace Reidy Asst-DON CUH, Richard Walshe Kerry General Hospital – Tralee, Colette Cunningham HfH Development Coordinator Cork, Shelagh Twomey Deputy-Manager HfH Programme & Dr Kieran McKeown HfH Evaluation Coordinator at a meeting in Cork to plan the National Audit.

Download Special HfH Newsletter here (PDF)

Overview of the HfH Programme

Each year almost 30,000 people die in Ireland.  These deaths are increasingly associated with older age and with chronic illness and, despite the fact that a large majority of people wish to die at home, the reality is that approximately two-thirds die in hospitals of one sort or another and 40% die in acute hospitals.  Research internationally has raised concerns about the quality of end-of-life care in hospitals and a consensus is emerging that care at the end of life should become an indicator of the performance of health systems.  In Ireland the Irish Hospice Foundation was sufficiently concerned as to undertake a feasibility study, followed by a pilot project, to examine how a comprehensive approach could be developed to change the culture of care and organisation regarding dying, death and bereavement in hospitals.  The Pilot Project (2004 - 2006) was undertaken at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda in partnership with the Health Service Executive.  It was one of three winners of the 2006 Public Service Excellence Awards selected to represent Ireland in Europe.  The Atlantic Philanthropies supported the Foundation during 2006 in using the learning from the project to inform the planning and development of a national programme. The Foundation established a national programme to mainstream hospice principles in hospital practice.  It was officially launched by President Mary McAleese on May 12th 2007. 

Aims & Key Themes

• To develop comprehensive standards for all hospitals in relation to dying, death and bereavement

• To develop the capacity of acute & community hospitals to introduce and sustain these standards

• To change the overall culture in hospitals & institutions in relation to dying, death and bereavement