• Graeme M Rocker, Peter M Dodek, Daren K Heyland, and Canadian Researchers at the End of Life Network.
• Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Center, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia. gmrocker@dal.ca
• Can. Respir. J. 2008 Jul 1;15(5):249-54.

BackgroundUnderstanding patients' needs and perspectives is fundamental to improving end-of-life (EOL) care. However, little is known of what quality care means to patients who have advanced lung disease.ObjectivesTo describe ratings of importance and satisfaction with elements of EOL care, informational needs, decision-making preferences, obstacles to a preferred location of death, clinical outcomes, and health care use before and during an index hospital admission for patients who have advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).MethodsA questionnaire with regard to quality EOL care was administered to patients older than 55 years of age who had advanced medical disease in five Canadian teaching hospitals.ResultsFor 118 hospitalized patients who had advanced COPD, the following items were rated as extremely important for EOL care: not being kept alive on life support when there is little hope for meaningful recovery (54.9% of respondents), symptom relief (46.6%), provision of care and health services after discharge (40.0%), trust and confidence in physicians (39.7%), and not being a burden on caregivers (39.6%). Compared with patients who had metastatic cancer, patients with COPD had lower (P<0.05) satisfaction with care, interest in information about prognosis, cardiopulmonary resuscitation or mechanical ventilation, and referral rates to palliative care, whereas use of acute care services was higher (P<0.05) for patients who had advanced COPD.ConclusionCanadian patients who have advanced COPD identify several priorities for improving care. Avoidance of prolonged or unwanted life support requires more effective communication, decision making and goal setting. Patients also deserve better symptom control and postdischarge strategies to minimize perceived burdens on caregivers, emergency room visits and hospital admissions.

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