Posted by Philip Satherley
16:00 BST - 1 December 2011
The Marie Curie Palliative Care Institute and the Royal College of Physicians have just published a summary of the National Care of the Dying Audit for hospitals for 2011/2012. This is the third report of its kind and whilst not all Hospital Trusts in the country were included in the audit, the findings of the report are encouraging.
The report indicates that, year on year, end-of-life care in hospitals is improving, the Liverpool Care Pathway is being increasingly used on wards and more Hospital Trusts are implementing plans to improve the quality of care for the dying.
The report also highlights that two areas need improving: i) communication ii) the documentation of care. Further training and education of healthcare professionals in these areas is needed.
From a patient perspective, it is reassuring that individual’s preferences and their care is being examined in detail, with tangible suggestions for improving the delivery of such care.
We will conduct a more thorough analysis of the data when the full details of the audit are published.
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