The legal and political problems of hospice care for patients with incurable disease in Ukraine.

Abstract

The article deals with the political and legal problems of palliative and hospice care for incurable patients in Ukraine. The author considered the basic concepts in this area («incurable patient», «palliative care», 

«hospice», «palliative policy»), analyzed the legal framework for hospice care in Ukraine. The author notes that all people hope for a good death, or rather, «a good life to the very end». Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen to everyone. Many people have to be in pain and suffering at the end of their lives. The goal of the palliative care is to prevent suffering and to alleviate the condition of the patient suffering from an incurable disease – by active identification of syndromes, like pain, and by providing adequate treatment that will balance the syndromes as much as possible during day and night. Public engagement and policy interventionsto improve the quality of death through the provision of high quality palliative care have gained momentum in recent years, and some countries have made greatstridesin improving affordable accessto palliative care. Unfortunately, Ukraine is a country with a low index of «quality of death», due to lack of political will, imperfection of legislative and regulatory framework, practical lack of funding, as well as informational silence on this topic. So thousands of Ukrainian’s citizens today do not receive any palliative care in the end of their lives. This situation is violates their constitutional rights to health, life, honor and dignity. Palliative care is aimed primarily at alleviating pain and painful symptoms, and includes social, psychological and moral support that enables the patient to maintain the most fulfilling and active life until her last day. In addition, it includes a support system for near patient to help them cope with the loss when it will happen.