2013 Volume 34 Issue 4 Pages 500-509
The objective of this study is to explore what institutional factors are related to end of life care provided in nursing homes in Japan. Questionnaires were sent to head nurses in nursing homes in Japan. Data were obtained from 389 (32.4%) facilities. The nursing homes were divided into 3 groups: no deaths in the facility (n＝79: group 1), a small number of expected deaths in the facility (n＝231: group 2), and a large number of expected deaths in the facility (n＝79 : group 3). In nursing homes in group 3, end-of-life decisions of residents and their family members were more supported, and there were more night visits by physicians, compared to the other 2 groups. The results suggest that it is important to organize an end of life care system based on care skill improvement of staff and communication with family members.
