Caring for the dying

Three-quarters of us want to die at home. The reality, however, is that almost that proportion die in hospital. The enormous advances in pain relief and our understanding of how to administer it effectively mean that people rarely need die in agony if technical skills and professional expertise are on hand. In busy hospitals, however, the primary duty is to provide life- saving and life-prolonging treatment rather than the conditions in which patients close to death can spend their last days peacefully and in close contact with their families.