The media critique of the Liverpool Care Pathway: some implications for nursing education

Tessa Watts1

  • 1College of Human and Health Sciences, Swansea University, SA2 8PP, Wales. t.watts@swansea.ac.uk

End-of-life care pathways are championed around the globe as tools that might be used to enhance the quality of care at the very end of a person's life. This paper examines recent negative media discourse in the UK about the Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient (LCP). This media coverage may have had damaging effects, but it has also served to highlight inappropriate and even suboptimal end-of-life care. While recognising the pervading influence of organisational structures and cultures, some implications for initial and ongoing education of nurses are identified.

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