Table 6 Awareness of and communication about dying
From: Dying in acute hospitals: voices of bereaved relatives
| Did your relative know he/she was likely to die? | News of likelihood to die told in a caring and sensitive way | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes, certainly | 18.4% (64) | Yes, definitely | 26.4% (58) |
| Yes, probably | 27.0% (94) | Yes, to some extent | 13.6% (30) |
| Probably not | 19.8% (69) | No, not at all | 2.7% (6) |
| No, definitely not | 24.7% (86) | Patient did not know was going to die | 18.6% (41) |
| Unsure | 10.1% (35) | Not told relative was going to die | 25.5% (56) |
| Don’t know | 13.2% (29) | ||
| Total | 348 | 220 |