Dying, a normal part of life: what learners see as the one thing they could change in the workplace to more appropriately provide end-of-life care

Abstract

© Flinders University. This work is copyrighted. It may be reproduced in whole or in part for research or training purposes, subject to the inclusion of an acknowledgement of the source. It may not be reproduced for commercial use or sale. Reproduction for purposes other than those indicated above requires written permission from the Research Centre for Palliative Care, Death & Dying. Contact [email protected] for permissions.End-of-Life Essentials (EOLE) is a government funded project which aims to provide free peer-reviewed online education modules and implementation resources on end-of-life care to health professionals in acute hospitals in Australia. 'Dying, A Normal Part of Life' is an educational module featured in the suite of EOLE modules and includes education around the impact of end of life and dying on health care professionals working in acute hospitals, identifying common patterns of trajectories of dying, and discussing the reasons why dying in acute hospitals is often complex for professionals, patients, and families. This White Paper outlines and explores the results of the retrospective data analysis conducted for a two year period, 6th May 2017 to 5th May 2019. A total of 2232 learner statements responding to the free text response question posed at the end of the module: "Tomorrow, the one thing I can change to more appropriately provide end-of-life care is…" were extracted from the EOLE learning platform. The results identified the following themes as nominated practice change areas: Patient-centred care; Communication skills; Humanising healthcare; Recognise and talk about dying; Organisational factors