Irish Examiner
Lack of end-of-life support for patients
By Evelyn Ring
Thursday, May 20, 2010
One in five hospital patients at the end of their lives could have died at home if there had been enough supports, according to a unique national audit published yesterday. It found that hospital admissions through emergency departments negatively impact on patients who die in hospital and called for more planned admissions. The Irish Hospice Foundation’s audit found significant differences in the assessments by doctors, nurses and relatives of care outcomes and the quality of deaths.
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Irish Health
Major deficits in end-of-life care
By Niall Hunter
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
One-fifth of hospital patients at the end of their lives could have died at home if there were sufficient supports, according to a new national audit from the Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF). And one-fifth of relatives felt that the quality of care around the end of their loved one's lives in hospitals was unacceptable. The audit has also found that hospital admissions through emergency departments negatively impact on care outcomes at the end of life.
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The Irish Independent
Care for dying patients varies depending on type of disease
By Eilish O'Regan
Thursday, May 20, 2010
PATIENTS with dementia get the worst care when dying in hospital -- while standards are highest for cancer sufferers, a new report revealed yesterday. The research uncovered for the first time that a 'hierarchy' -- based on a person's disease -- exists in the quality of treatment while dying in Irish hospitals. The findings from the Irish Hospice Foundation emerged in the first audit of treatment provided to patients in their last week of life in 24 acute hospitals and 19 community facilities.
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The Irish Times
Extra supports would allow more to die at home
By Paul Cullen
Thursday, May 20, 2010
ONE-FIFTH OF seriously ill hospital patients could have died at home if sufficient supports were available, an audit of end-of-life care in hospitals has found. The report by the Irish Hospice Foundation found significant differences in how doctors, nurses and relatives assess the care and quality of death of patients, with doctors tending to underestimate the negative aspects of care and relatives tending to overestimate them.
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