• Berivan Yildiz, Ida J Korfage, Erica Fe Witkamp, Anne Goossensen, Liza Gg van Lent, H Roeline Pasman, Bregje D Onwuteaka-Philipsen, Masha Zee, and Agnes van der Heide.
• Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
• Palliat Med. 2022 Apr 1; 36 (4): 751-761.

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic and restricting measures have affected end-of-life care across different settings.AimTo compare experiences of bereaved relatives with end-of-life care for a family member or friend who died at home, in a hospital, nursing home or hospice during the pandemic.DesignAn open observational online survey was developed and disseminated via social media and public fora (March-July 2020). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses.ParticipantsIndividuals who lost a family member or friend in the Netherlands during the COVID-19 pandemic.ResultsThe questionnaire was filled out by 393 bereaved relatives who lost a family member or friend at home (n = 68), in a hospital (n = 114), nursing home (n = 176) or hospice (n = 35). Bereaved relatives of patients who died in a hospital most often evaluated medical care (79%) as sufficient, whereas medical care (54.5%) was least often evaluated as sufficient in nursing homes. Emotional support for relatives was most often evaluated as sufficient at home (67.7%) and least often in nursing homes (40.3%). Sufficient emotional support for relatives was associated with a higher likelihood to rate the place of death as appropriate. Bereaved relatives of patients who died at a place other than home and whose care was restricted due to COVID-19 were less likely to evaluate the place of death as appropriate.ConclusionEnd-of-life care during the COVID-19 pandemic was evaluated least favourably in nursing homes. The quality of emotional support for relatives and whether care was restricted or not were important for assessing the place of death as appropriate.

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