End of Life Issues and Care

APA has resources for professionals and the public on palliative care and end of life issues. Information provided includes policy statements and resources for individuals with serious or life-limiting illness and their care partners.

• APA Resolution on Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues (2017)
  APA, an organization committed to promoting the psychological well-being of individuals across the life span, is committed to actively promoting and supporting psychology's involvement in palliative and end-of-life care.
• APA Resolution on Assisted Dying (2017)
  APA takes a position that neither endorses nor opposes assisted dying at this time.

• Older Adults and Palliative and End-of-Life Care Factsheet (2019) (PDF, 153KB)
  What palliative and end-of-life care? What are obstacles to palliative and end-of-life care? What mental health issues and concerns do some older adults face near end-of-life?
• Culturally Diverse Communities and Palliative and End-of-Life Care Fact Sheet (2019)
  Why is culture important? How does ethnicity influence palliative and end-of-life care? What are the barriers to effective communication? And what is the role of family?
• Psychosocial Issues in Palliative and End-of-Life Care: Considerations for Psychologists (2019)
  APA CE Workshop. This workshop identifies ways to promote high-quality, effective palliative and end-of-life care and provides guidance on clinical practice that supports individuals with advanced serious and terminal illness and their care partners. 3 CEUs 
• How psychologists can bring their expertise to end-of-life care (November 2017)
  APA Monitor on Psychology ^® CE Corner. APA resolution calls for the association to promote and support psychology’s involvement in palliative care and end-of-life issues.
• Assisted dying: The motivations, benefits and pitfalls of hastening death (December 2017)
  APA Monitor on Psychology CE Corner. As physician-assisted dying becomes more available, psychologists are finding opportunities to study people’s motivations and the potential benefits and harms of aid in dying.
• Speaking of Psychology: Making talking about death easier (2017)
  In this podcast, Brian Carpenter, PhD, talks about why it’s important to have end-of-life decision conversations and how to approach these discussions successfully.
• Psychologists and End of Life: Contributions to Training, Research, Practice and Policy  (PDF, 822KB) (2017)
  Report from the APA Working Group on End of Life Issues and Care presented at the 2017 APA Annual Convention.
• A Good Death is an Important Part of a Good Life (December 2017)
  This Psychology Benefits Society blog article discusses the complexities around how and why some patients choose assisted dying and the controversy surrounding it.
• Finding Meaning in Life and in Death: A Call to Culturally Competent Action (December 2017)
  This Psychology Benefits Society blog article examines how current psychological treatment at end of life can have a cultural bias and why cultural competency at end of life is important.
• End of Life & Socioeconomic Status Fact Sheet (2017)
  Research has elucidated several areas where SES appears to significantly affect end of life issues. Two such areas include the early detection of life-threatening illnesses and the quality of life for people diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses.

• Conversations Matter
  National Institute of Nursing Research at the National Institutes of Health NIH Fast Facts Sheet for families of children in palliative care
• Dying in America: Improving quality and honoring individual preferences near the end of life
  Institute of Medicine 2014 report.
• Identifying and addressing the needs of adolescents and young adults with cancer: Workshop summary
  Workshop convened by the Institute of Medicine's National Cancer Policy Forum in July 2013 to facilitate discussion about gaps and challenges in caring for adolescent and young adult cancer patients and potential strategies and actions to improve the quality of their care.
• Integrating health care and social services for people with serious illness: Proceedings of a workshop
  Workshop convened by the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine in July 2018 to explore the challenges and opportunities related to integrating health care and social services for people with serious illness.
• Al final de la vida (End of Life)
  National Institute on Aging Spanish language articles on end-of-life topics.