Death and End-of-Life Planning in One Midwestern Community

Abstract

DESPITE the great attention given to death and dying in the medical, ethical, and legal literature in the United States, an incomplete picture remains of end-of-life planning and decision making. It is reported that nearly 80% of deaths occur in health care organizations and more specifically that 60% of deaths occur in hospitals.¹ The findings of SUPPORT (Study to Understand Prognosis and Preference for Outcomes and Risks of Treatments) provide a picture of the treatment of critically ill patients with limited prognosis, but it does not provide a picture of end-of-life planning and decision making for the general population.² The findings of the La Crosse Advance Directive Study (LADS) reported herein provide a more comprehensive, detailed look at death, end-of-life planning, and forgoing medical treatment in a geographically defined population.