Compassionate Communities: Strengthening Community End-of-life Care in Thailand

Due to low levels of public death literacy, there is a general lack of planning and preparation by individuals and their loved ones when dealing with death and loss. According to Thailand Development Research Institute study on people's perceptions and attitudes towards palliative care, individuals avoid talking about death as it is deemed not culturally appropriate. As a result, it reduces the publics’ overall knowledge and preparedness in dealing with issues surrounding death and loss. As such, more than 75% of Thai people do not know of palliative care, and 79% are uninformed of succession planning, particularly a “Living Will or Testament”.
Furthermore, there is limited access to basic palliative care services for those in need. The Integration of Specialist Palliative Care into Tertiary Hospitals survey: A Multicenter Point Prevalence Survey which involved 5,763 patients in Thailand hospitals, had 1,079 patients meeting the criteria for palliative care. However, only 17.3% of the 1,079 patients had the opportunity to consult with or access basic palliative care.
This indicates the need to promote death literacy and strengthen the palliative care services within communities, supporting individuals in addressing issues related to death or loss.