Significant Life Events: Developing Knowledge for Care at the End of Life in Old Age

A better understanding of experiences of the end of life in old age is important for practitioners, but there are considerable methodological and ethical challenges to research in this area. An interdisciplinary team at the University of Bristol conducted a pilot study of 100 people aged over 80, over the course of a year. The study focused on significant events in the lives of participants, the vast majority of whom were living ordinary lives in the community. Data were gathered from participants and their relatives and, where relevant, from health and social care professionals. In this paper key findings are presented and the implications for research and practice considered.