Goals of care are important for older adults with severe illness and their families, and are infrequently addressed by health professionals

摘要

Context: Seriously ill patients prefer end-of-life care to be focused on comfort, but what healthcare providers prescribe often differs from patients' wishes. Patients with a poor prognosis often die in the intensive care unit or undergo cardiopulmonary resuscitation resulting in unnecessary suffering. Poor communication between critically ill patients, family caregivers and healthcare providers has been identified as a barrier to the quality of end-of-life care. Guidelines regarding end-of-life discussion have been developed but they lack input from patients and family.