Pulmonary and Critical Care

End-of-Life Care

End-of-life care (EoLC) refers to health care for a person nearing the end of their life or in the advanced stage of a terminal illness. Generally speaking, people who are dying need care in four areas—physical comfort, mental and emotional needs, spiritual issues, and practical tasks.

End-of-life care involves a range of possible decisions, including hospice care, palliative care, patients' rights to choose, participation in clinical trials and choice of medical interventions, including continuance of routine medical interventions. Such decisions are informed by medical, financial and ethical considerations.

In most advanced countries, medical spending on people in the last twelve months of life makes up roughly 10% of total aggregate medical spending, while those in the last three years of life can cost up to 25%.