Pathways in end-of-life care for older people: care managers' reasoning

Seven care managers employed by a large municipality in Sweden were interviewed concerning their reasoning regarding end-of-life care for older people. Data were analyzed using a hermeneutic approach. The results showed that end-of-life care was considered to constitute a small part of the care managers' work and was something they did not focus on in general when assessing care needs. Two different pathways to death--the natural and the medical--were identified. In the natural pathway, death was invisible and the care was more routine-oriented. In the medical pathway, death was visualised and the care more individualised. Neither of the pathways paid attention to communication or existential needs. Thus, there is a need for a palliative pathway to death based on the philosophy of palliative care, which could provide guidance for care managers and promote opportunities for older people to achieve a dignified dying and death.