COVID-19 end-of-life care: symptoms and supportive therapy use in an Australian hospital

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Descriptions of symptoms and medication use at end of life in COVID-19 are limited to small cross-sectional studies, with no Australian longitudinal data. AIMS: To describe end-of-life symptoms and care needs of people dying of COVID-19. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included consecutive admitted patients who died at a Victorian tertiary referral hospital from 1 January to 30 September directly due to COVID-19. Clinical characteristics, symptoms and use of supportive therapies, including medications and non-pharmacological interventions in the last 3 days of life were extracted. RESULTS: The cohort comprised 58 patients (median age 87 years, interquartile range (IQR) 8..