title: Dying in two acute hospitals: would usual care meet Australian national clinical standards?
abstract: The Australian Commission for Quality and Safety in Health Care (ACQSHC) has articulated 10 clinical standards with the aim of improving the consistency of quality healthcare delivery. Currently, the majority of Australians die in acute hospitals. But despite this, no agreed standard of care exists to define the minimum standard of care that people should accept in the final hours to days of life. As a result, there is limited capacity to conduct audits that focus on the gap between current care and recommended care. There is, however, accumulating evidence in the end of life literature to define which aspects of care are likely to be considered most important to those people facing imminent death. These themes offer standards against which to conduct audits. This is very apt given the national recommendation that healthcare should be delivered in the context of considering people's wishes while always treating people with dignity and respect.
authors.affiliation: Department of Palliative Care, Calvary Mater Newcastle, Edith Street, Waratah, NSW 2298, Australia.
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.affiliation: Department of Palliative Care, Calvary Mater Newcastle, Edith Street, Waratah, NSW 2298, Australia.
authors.forename: Naomi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Byfieldt
authors.affiliation: Department of Palliative Care, Calvary Mater Newcastle, Edith Street, Waratah, NSW 2298, Australia.
authors.forename: Malcolm
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Green
authors.affiliation: Cancer Decorate, The Lodge, John Hunter Hospital Campus, Locked Bag 1, HRMC, NSW 2310, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Saul
authors.affiliation: Cancer Decorate, The Lodge, John Hunter Hospital Campus, Locked Bag 1, HRMC, NSW 2310, Australia.
authors.forename: Jill
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lack
authors.affiliation: The University of Notre Dame Australia, 170 Darlinghurst Street, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia.
authors.forename: Jane L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Philips
mesh_terms: D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009517:New South Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D057240:Patient Preference; D018802:Patient-Centered Care / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D059039:Standard of Care; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology / Q000592:standards*