Abstract
A survey was conducted among the medical and nursing staffs who had cared for patients who died in the geriatric medical unit of a London hospital. Interviews were designed to assess staff awareness of their patients' knowledge that they were dying; the degree of communication between staff and patients about death; staff perception of the quality of the patients' care; and psychological difficulties in accepting the death of a patient. The results suggested that the failure of medical and nursing staff to pool their perceptions of patients' difficulties contributed to inappropriate care and resultant stress on staff members. (KIE abstract)
