Supporting people with dementia to die at home in Ireland

Irish Hospice Foundation Brief Report 2016

With the publication of the National Dementia Strategy, there is a welcome emphasis on early diagnosis and establishing a dementia friendly Ireland to enable people with dementia to live well in their local communities (1). However, the needs of people with advanced dementia are not often discussed and little is known about what supports people with dementia need to enable them to live well and die well in their own homes. In response to a gap in knowledge in this area and an increase in dementia referrals to the Nurses for Night Care service2 (NNC), the Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF) carried out an audit on referrals of people with dementia to the NNC service in 2015.