Followup Report PDF Download

Failings in the care provided to people as they approach the end of their life can result in needless pain and suffering. In Dying without dignity, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (http://www.ombudsman.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/32167/Dying_without_dignity_report.pdf) identified systemic issues affecting the quality and delivery of end of life care and used case studies to show how patients - and those close to them -had been affected by poor care. We welcome the report, which concluded that the NHS needed to improve in a number of areas and recommended that the report's findings be used to inform a new approach to end of life care. Witnesses told us that they were aware of the issues raised in the report and that the focus must now be on implementing change. We agree. We want good quality, timely and compassionate care to be available to all those who need it at the end of their life. In this Report, we outline the key areas in which we expect to see significant and fast-paced improvements. These are: (i) culture, behaviour and training; (ii) the provision of integrated, 24/7 palliative and End of Life Care (EOLC) services; and (iii) leadership and commissioning.