Meeting the needs of Somali patients at the end of life

Given the large number of Somali refugees living in Minnesota, it is likely that Minnesota physicians will encounter Somali patients, some of whom will have serious illnesses. Although our knowledge of Somali expectations about health care is growing, little has been written about the Somali people's views of treatment for life-threatening illnesses or their ideas about end-of-life care. After encountering a Somali man with advanced cancer in our practice, we attempted to learn about the Somali view of death and dying and the kind of treatment Somali patients might want during their final days. We share what we learned so that others might provide more culturally competent end-of-life care for Somali patients in the future.