Partnership publications

This report outlines the findings of the first Scottish national survey of public awareness, knowledge and understanding of palliative care.  The survey aimed to establish the current level of knowledge of palliative care, establish what factors contribute to knowledge of palliative care, and explore attitudes towards palliative care.  Results indicated that the general public’s grasp of, and desire for the delivery of, a holistic concept of end of life care which embraces the physical, practical, social, spiritual and emotional needs of individuals and families may be considerably greater than had been previously realised.  The research also indicated that a majority of people would like to see issues of death and dying more openly addressed in Scottish society, and that a majority of people would like information about palliative care services to be more generally available.