Improving integrated team working to support people to die in the place of their choice

Abstract

Dying in a place of one's choice is considered to be a quantifiable measure of the effectiveness of end of life services in primary care. Although most people say they would prefer to die in their own home, very few actually do so. This article looks at how a team of community nurses and GPs changed their practice by using recognised end of life care tools. These helped practitioners in supporting adults with terminal illnesses to die in a place of their choice. A subsequent audit of patients' actual place of death against their preferred place demonstrates how working in more integrated ways has helped.