Abstract
BACKGROUND: Death in the place that the patient has selected and feels comfortable remaining in for the remainder of their life is one of the main objectives of palliative care for terminally ill cancer patients. Nevertheless, this problem is constantly disregarded. The goal of the present study was to look at variables that affected cancer patients' decisions about their place of death. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from May to August 2018. Using a continuous sampling method, 631 patients who had passed away between 2011 and 2017 were selected among the patients with a history of cancer and hospitalization at the Firoozgar Hospital in Tehran. A self-made 3-section questionnaire with 21 questions was completed by phone calls made to the families who confirmed their patients' deaths due to cancer. Data were managed by SPSS software Version 13, and descriptive statistics were used in data analysis. RESULTS: Based on the results, among 631 deceased patients, only 157 (24.9%) chose their place of death, and 474 (75.1%) had not spoken about it during their lifetime. Among the examined variables, age, sex, education, insurance status, duration of disease, activities of daily living, awareness of disease progression, and receiving home care had a significant association with this choice in people who died of cancer. CONCLUSION: Despite the importance of the choice of place of death by the patient in the final days of life, the possibility of having an option is not provided for most cancer patients. Patients who understand how their disease is progressing at this point are probably going to want to select where they pass away. Consequently, the healthcare system must be ready to grant cancer patients the option to choose their final resting place and ensure a comfortable and respectable passing. Future research can be built upon the results of this study.