1.A survey of end of life care at long-term care facilities in urban areas in Japan
Yuri Morimoto ; Takuya Shinjo ; Masako Sekimoto ; Toshiaki Higashikawa ; Masashi Niikuni ; Mariko Oishi ; Akihiro Ishikawa ; Hiroyuki Makimura ; Takashi Okishio ; Yasunaga Okada ; Akira Honjo
Palliative Care Research 2015;10(1):120-124
The aim of this study was to investigate the end of life care provided by long-term care facilities and nursing homes. A cross-sectional survey of all long-term care facilities and nursing homes in Kobe was performed in July 2013. Questionnaires were sent to 350 facilities with an 89.7% response rate. In total, 121(39%)of respondents stated that end of life care was available, and 151(48%)responded that facilities were willing to provide end of life care for terminally ill residents. One hundred fifty-two(48%)and 183(58%)of respondents answered that facilities were available for managing residents with percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy, and transfusion, respectively. Seventy-two(23%)of respondents reported that facilities for managing the use of narcotics were available. In conclusion, a minority of long-term care facilities and nursing homes ware available for providing end of life care for residents, though approximately 50% were willing to do so.