End-of-life care and care pathways in Victoria: a project to develop an integrated approach

Within Victoria many services have or are introducing end-of-life care pathways as quality assurance tools to aid and guide care at the end of life. Currently there is little empirical evidence of benefit or harm to patients who are cared for using end-of-life care pathways (EOLCP). However, this lack of empirical data has not limited the introduction of EOLCP across numerous setting both internationally and nationally. This project was established to develop an integrated approach for health care service providers interested in the use of EOLCP in Victoria, Australia. The project was funded by the Department of Health and led by the Centre for Palliative Care (a collaborative centre of St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne and The University of Melbourne), a statewide service provider whose work has significant relevance to this priority.