What really matters in end-of-life discussions? Perspectives of patients in hospital with serious illness and their families

BACKGROUND: The guideline-recommended elements to include in discussions about goals of care with patients with serious illness are mostly based on expert opinion. We sought to identify which elements are most important to patients and their families. METHODS: We used a cross-sectional study design involving patients from 9 Canadian hospitals. We asked older adult patients with serious illness and their family members about the occurrence and …