Care at the end of life: What really matters to people?

BACKGROUND: Providing high quality end of life care requires all health professionals, including general practitioners (GPs), to possess an appreciation of what issues are likely to be important to people in their final stages of life. This includes timely conversations to discuss and document people's expectations for their care. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this paper is to summarise the major issues people have defined as important contributors to high quality end of life. This includes a summary of the issues and ways to consider assessment and management strategies. DISCUSSION: As death has become increasingly medicalised there has been a shift to greater focus on clinical interventions, and this has come at a loss to people and their families.