By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-01-15 11:01:47 | Updated at 2025-01-15 14:51:19
3 hours ago
Terminally ill elderly patients using end-of-life care services that also cater to their spiritual needs have more stable health conditions during the final stages of their lives, a study by the University of Hong Kong has found.
Carers of elderly people who used such services also reported reduced stress levels, according to the findings of the 3-year study conducted between April 2021 and last September by HKU’s Department of Social Work and Social Administration, which were revealed on Wednesday.
“Through the study, we want to make people realise that the end of life is equally important as the start of life. We celebrate the birth of a newborn baby, why can’t we have the same attitude with respect to death?” Amy Chow Yin-man, the leading researcher of the study, said.
The study looked at a total of 131 elderly people who received spiritual end-of-life care services from Hong Kong Chinese Christian Churches Union Kwong Yum Care Home, and another group of 40 who only received basic palliative care services.
Researchers compared the physical, emotional, and social distress levels of both groups of elderly individuals who were terminally ill, as well as that of their carers.
The results showed that for those who died within six months after receiving the service, their physical conditions remained stable, in contrast to the control group, which experienced deterioration in their health.
In addition, the anxiety levels of family members of the deceased elderly who used the service with spiritual care significantly decreased after three months and continued to decline further after six months.
