The state of end of life care: Building back better after Covid-19

Article

Covid-19 has caused serious disruption to end of life care provision in England. Excess deaths have spiked due to the pandemic, putting more strain on providers. The hospice sector has seen their fundraising disrupted, putting beds and continuity of care at risk.

Place of death has shifted from acute to community settings, without the time for proper proactive planning and resourcing. And the well documented difficulties in social care – where life expectancy of residents is between 12 and
24 months – have impacted wellbeing and quality of life for many at the end of their lives.

We must go further and faster on end of life care in the coming years. This should be based on delivering a managed shift to community-led end of life care. This would not be one size all – rather, it would be about a model led by the community, and through which people receive the specialist and non-specialist services that are right for them.

Our policy recommendations focus on 'providing everyone the right care, from the right person, at the right time'.

Related items

  1. Newcastle street view of famous bridge and buildings

    The evolution of devolution: How the English devolution and community empowerment bill can go further

    The government’s early commitment to broadening and deepening devolution in England is very welcome, but the bill must be bold enough to make change that people can see and feel.
  2. A woman with long dark hair wearing a woolly hat puts her arm around her small son who is holding a teddybear. They're in a community centre in front of boxes of charitable donations

    Making the Child Poverty Strategy work for migrant families

    If we are serious about tackling child poverty, we cannot ignore the children of migrant families.
  3. Two young children run playing underneath a rainbow canopy in a park or garden

    It takes a village: Empowering families and communities to improve children's health

    How can we build the healthiest generation of children ever?