With an increasing elderly population, estimated to rise to 26% of the UK's total population
by 2020 (World Health Organization (WHO), 2004), this demographic represents a large …

Background: the need for access to high-quality palliative care at the end of life is becoming
of increasing public health concern. The majority of deaths in the UK occur in acute …

Do older people have equitable access to specialist palliative care? A number of studies
addressing this question have been published in recent years; however, all have …

The recognition of the importance of providing palliative and end-of-life care in long-term
care has seen a rapid increase in research and advances in clinical practice. This has …

In the last decade, the amount of literature, research and government policy highlighting the
needs of patients at the end of life and their families, to receive expert care and treatment …

BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care September 2011 Vol 1 No 2 116 palliative care providers.
The need to improve palliative and end of life care for older people is a global priority. In …

Feature dying is one of the core roles of an acute hospital.■ Failure to recognise when
continuation of treatment is not in patients' best interests, resulting in a failure to address …

Current projections indicate that by 2050 the number of people aged over 80 years old will
rise to 395 million and that by this date 25-30% of people over the age of 85 will show some …

Background: Hospital-based palliative care consultative teams assist with decision-making,
symptom management, patient and family support, and discharge planning for those with …

Practice development proved effective in changing culture and practice in end of life care in
two nursing homes. Catriona Curry, Heather Middleton and Bob Brown report provision of …