Celebrities are often asked about their last words. A new documentary series is being shown on TV in which people paint their own coffins. Hospice associations post on Instagram. Even outside of Holy Week, the discussion about dying seems to have arrived in society. In the organizations of the health care system, this has so far only been achieved to a limited extent. That's because caring for the dying and their affiliated in nursing and hospice facilities require more time and resources, and caring communities need more support, says Klaus Wegleitner, a care and public health researcher at the University of Graz.
"Most people wish to die at home in a familiar environment," Wegleitner knows from many conversations. The reality is different: Nearly two-thirds die in hospital, one in six in a nursing home. "For this, people to die at home necessary conditions would be needed, i.e. more space and more attention. With the current, often poor working conditions and the economic pressure in the facilities, this task is difficult to achieve," warns the sociologist. Caregivers also have to deal with experiences of loss. Therefore, more care is needed for those who care. It would also be desirable to strengthen palliative skills, communication and ethics in nursing training and in medical studies.
The state must create the framework conditions and structures so that people can be there for each other. "Especially in the expansion of hospice and palliative care and in the integration of 'culture of dying' in homes and in home nursing, a lot has been achieved in Austria," admits the deputy director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Aging and Care Research at the University of Graz. It is essential to have a good mix of services and an interplay between professional help and civil society involvement. "Enabling good dying is the responsibility of each and every individual," Wegleitner emphasizes. There are already numerous international initiatives to this end, he says, which strengthen end-of-life care networks in urban districts and communities under the concept of compassionate or caring communities. However, these should by no means compensate for services provided by an overstretched welfare state. Rather, structured support is needed for these solidarity-based associations.