End-of-life care is the term used to describe the support and medical care given during the time surrounding death. Such care does not happen only in the moments before breathing ceases and the heart stops beating. Older people often live with one or more chronic illnesses and need care for days, weeks, and even months before death. Read the articles below to learn what happens before, during, and after dying.
Articles
What Is End-of-Life Care?
Caregivers: Learn about palliative care, hospice, advance directives, and how to care for people you love when they near the end of their lives.
Providing Comfort at the End of Life
Read about how to provide physical, emotional, and spiritual comfort to relieve suffering when caring for a loved one who is dying.
What Are Palliative Care and Hospice Care?
What is the difference between hospice and palliative care? Caregivers: learn about options for care at the end of life.
Where Can I Get End-of-Life Care?
There’s no right place to die. Caregivers should consider the best option for their situation: home, hospital, nursing home, or another place.
End-of-Life Care for People with Dementia
Caring for a person with dementia at the end of life has special challenges. Help them have good quality of life as they’re dying.
Understanding Healthcare Decisions at the End of Life
Being a healthcare proxy and making end-of-life care decisions for someone you love can be challenging. Learn what to expect.
What Happens When Someone Dies?
What can you expect to happen when someone is dying? Read about dyspnea and other symptoms people experience in the last days of life.
What to Do After Someone Dies
What do you need to do after someone you love dies? Learn about who signs the death certificate, organ donation, and whether you need an autopsy.
Getting Help for Your Grief
Mourning someone close to you can leave you lost, sad, or angry. Get help for your grief and loss through grief counseling and support groups.
Mourning the Death of a Spouse
Get help for your grief after the death of a spouse. Read about bereavement counseling, support groups, and how to get on with life without your partner.
