Dignity, when it’s needed most

YOUR loved one is dying, in an hour or less.

You and your family are gathered around their bed in the busy ward of an acute hospital. A TV blares, laughter erupts from visitors at the next bed, there’s loud conversation in the corridor, and down the hall a hoover buzzes.

This scenario does not honour something intensely personal and profound. Yet, according to Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF) research, 43% of us die in acute hospital settings. Seven in 10 want to die at home but — for many of us — that wish is not fulfilled.