Dying to care: a report into social care at the end of life

Scotland faces a crisis in caring for older and dying people. 

As health and medical advances allow us to live further into older age, greater proportions of the community will live with multiple and complex conditions for longer periods, and need medical and social care. 

With increasing pressure already on public funds, we need to look at how more care can be delivered without additional funding. However, we also need to make sure we value the role of social care professionals, family carers and volunteers for the enormous contribution they make to people’s lives and the effectiveness of the health and care system. 

The Scottish Government published its Strategic Framework for Action on Palliative and End of Life Care in December 2015. The main vision of this framework is that, by 2021, everyone in Scotland who needs palliative care has access to it. We welcome this commitment. In this report we look at current understandings of people’s needs and the barriers to meeting them. We also make a case for new models of health and social care. Our vision is for a seamless health and social care support network for people at end of their life, including an integrated team all working together. 

The solutions require creativity, innovation, and a coordinated response, across communities, statutory services, and private and not-for-profit sectors. We hope that this report will feed into the work needed to achieve the framework’s ambition – that regardless of family support, where you live, or your financial position, everyone has the same choices and opportunities to live as well as possible for as long as possible, until the end.

The partnership

As organisations with an interest in improving care for people with all terminal and chronic conditions, we recognise a need for significant improvements in social care particularly when approaching the end of life. 

To support greater discussion and access on this important topic Marie Curie set up a partnership to develop this report:

• Marie Curie
• MND Scotland
• Hospice UK
• The Association of Palliative Care Social Workers

Published in December 2016.