Quality of dying and death with cancer in Israel

Michal Braun, Ilanit Hasson-Ohayon, Sarah Hales, Camilla Zimmermann, Anne Rydall, Tamar Peretz, Gary Rodin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: The quality of dying and death refers to the evaluation of the final days of life and the moment of death with respect to how it is prepared for, faced and experienced by those with a terminal illness. It includes experience in multiple domains: physical, psychological, social, spiritual or existential, the nature of health care, life closure and death preparation, and the circumstances of death. Aim: To explore the quality of dying and death in cancer patients in Israel and its relationship to place of death and socio-demographic characteristics of the primary caregivers and the deceased. Design: Retrospective assessment of the quality of dying and death, based on caregiver responses to the Quality of Dying and Death (QODD) questionnaire (overall score ranges from 0 to 100; higher scores reflect better dying and death experiences) 8 to 10 months after the death. Participants: Ninety-five caregivers of Jewish cancer patients, most of whom were female spouses or children of the deceased. Results: Mean QODD score was 57.2 (standard deviation [SD]=15), which is in the low-moderate range. Place of death, gender and age of the caregiver, and age of the deceased, were associated with QODD score. Conclusions: This retrospective study in Israel demonstrated that the overall quality of dying and death was regarded as poor by almost half of the caregivers. These findings may reflect the relative lack of specialized palliative care and advance care planning in Israel at the time of this study, which took place between 2006 and 2009. Further research and enhancement of palliative care resources may be needed in Israel and several encouraging recent developments (e.g. staff training and legislation) suggest that such changes are now underway.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1973-1980
Number of pages8
JournalSupportive Care in Cancer
Volume22
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2014

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Acknowledgments We thank the study participants who so kindly gave their time and effort to help us with our research. We also thank Omer Wilner and Lior Gilad for assisting with participant recruitment, conducting the interviews and study coordination. This project was supported in part by the Gerald and Paula Kirsh Family Fund in the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation.

Keywords

  • Cancer
  • Israel
  • Quality of death and dying

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