Issues faced by people receiving end-of-life care 70 years ago, including poverty and isolation, are ‘still far too common’, according to a new report.
Marie Curie and the Queen’s Nursing Institute have carried out a new national survey of end-of-life care providers based on their ‘ground-breaking’ report in 1952.
In the new survey, 58% of end-of-life care providers said they cared for people who could benefit from a food bank at least some of the time.
Social isolation remains an ‘unacceptably common’ experience, Marie Curie said, after almost every survey respondent (97%) reported caring for people at home who are lonely.
Nine in 10 carers also said they are unable to meet the needs of the people they care for, or those close to them, at least in part.
Marie Curie’s head of research and innovation, Dr Emma Carduff, said: ‘Given the significant developments in welfare and healthcare provision since 1952, I had hoped to see more improvement in the end-of-life experience since the original report.
‘It’s encouraging that there are many more end-of-life care providers in the system now.
'But there are still significant gaps in care, particularly in the out of hours period and for those isolated by geography, or living alone.
‘We must ensure an equitable end of life experience for everyone, and I’m very concerned that we have such a long way to go.’
