End-of-life care for the elderly has become an issue in the current world. Most aged patients prefer to die at home especially if this will not burden their family. In as much as the health practitioners would love to grant them this wish, a lot of factors influence this decision. The factors include; complications of illnesses, progression of the illness, need to control symptoms of diseases, availability of family support, availability of equipment needed to support treatment and access to community based palliative care services (Healthtalk.org, 2014).
The palliative care and hospice programs available need to factor in all these components before they can discharge a patient. Most patients do not meet the entire necessary criterion that will ensure that they are well taken care of at their homes. A report by the BioMed Central indicates that about 63% of the aging population want to die in their homes; however this is not the case. Most aged patients do not meet the criterion necessary for outpatient treatment. This explains why most aged patients meet their death in hospitals as opposed to dying at home as desired. To add on these, some elderly patients do not want to burden their family members due to failed bodily functions and thus opt to spend their last days in the hospital.
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As a nurse, I believe people need to be granted their desires especially if this are the only thing that will make them happy. However, I would consider all the factors that come to play before supporting the patient’s desire to die at home. For instance, if the patient cannot afford palliative care at home, I would advise the family against it since it may be an expensive ordeal that may leave the family financially drained. On the other hand, if all the factors that come to play have been addressed, then I would deem it right to support the patient’s last desires; of course this has to be in consultation with the family members. Such cases are sensitive and may require critical decision making which should be in favour of all the parties involved in providing the care.
References
Biomed Central. (2013). BMC Palliative Care. Heterogeneity and changes in preferences for dying at home: a systematic review . Retrieved October 18, 2016 from: http://bmcpalliatcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-684X-12-7
Healthtalk.org. (2014). Living with Dying . Retrieved October 18, 2016 from: http://www.healthtalk.org/peoples-experiences/dying-bereavement/living-dying/where-people-want-die
