Non-medical
Family and friends
Family members are often uncertain as to what they should be doing when a person is dying. Many gentle, familiar daily tasks, such as combing hair, putting lotion on delicate skin, and holding hands, are comforting and provide a meaningful method of communicating love to a dying person.Family members may be suffering emotionally due to the impending death. Their own fear of death may affect their behavior. They may feel guilty about past events in their relationship with the dying person or feel that they have been neglectful. These common emotions can result in tension, fights between family members over decisions, worsened care, and sometimes (in what medical professionals call the "Daughter from California syndrome") a long-absent family member arrives while a patient is dying to demand inappropriately aggressive care. Family members may also be coping with unrelated problems, such as physical or mental illness, emotional and relationship issues, or legal difficulties. These problems can limit their ability to be involved, civil, helpful, or present. Spirituality and Religion
Spirituality is thought to be of increased importance to an individuals wellbeing during a terminal illness or toward the end-of-life. Pastoral/spiritual care has a particular significance in end of life care, and is considered an essential part of palliative care by the WHO. In palliative care, responsibility for spiritual care is shared by the whole team, with leadership given by specialist practitioners such as pastoral care workers.
The number of people who are admitted to hospital during an end-of-life care program is not known. In addition, the impact of home-based end-of-life care on caregivers, healthcare staff, and health service costs is not clear, however, there is weak evidence to suggest that this intervention may reduce health care costs by a small amount. Disparities in end-of-life care
Not all groups in society have good access to end-of-life care. A systematic review conducted in 2021 investigated the end of life care experiences of people with severe mental illness, including those with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder. The research found that individuals with a severe mental illness were unlikely to receive the most appropriate end of life care. The review recommended that there needs to be close partnerships and communication between mental health and end of life care systems, and these teams need to find ways to support people to die where they choose. More training, support and supervision needs to be available for professionals working in end of life care; this could also decrease prejudice and stigma against individuals with severe mental illness at the end of life, notably in those who are homeless. In addition, studies have shown that minority patients face several additional barriers to receiving quality end-of-life care. Minority patients are prevented from accessing care at an equitable rate for a variety of reasons including: individual discrimination from caregivers, cultural insensitivity, racial economic disparities, as well as medical mistrust.