Care of the patient close to death

The recognition that the patient is close to death is essential and usually possible. Assessment must be meticulous, goals clearly articulated, and strategies for symptom relief and comprehensive care defined and monitored. Death should not be obstructed by futile measures. The wish of a patient to be allowed to die needs to be respected, as well as a patientʹs anguish in the face of imminent and unwanted death. The final phase of life (hours or days) should not be seen as a time of treatment failure, but as a time for completion of tasks in peace and dignity, even in the mist of weakness and profound surrender.