All hospitals should draw up strategies for dealing with palliative, end-of-life care and bereavement, according to a new report published today.
The document from the Oireachtas Health Committee recommends that a designated person within each hospital should be given responsibility for dealing with end-of-life care.
It also says the provision of single occupancy rooms for patients who are dying should be considered a priority.
The report identifies regional disparities in the provision of palliative care, and it calls for the urgent development of palliative care in-patient units in the Midlands, North East and South East of the country.