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Home-Based End-of-Life Care by a Korean Medicine Doctor-Led Interprofessional Team: A Case Report

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background: In South Korea's rapidly aging society, a significant gap exists between the preference for dying at home and the high rate of hospital deaths. This case report presents a home-based end-of-life care model led by a Korean Medicine Doctor (KMD) to address this issue.Case Presentation: A 102-year-old female with end-stage Alzheimer's dementia wished to die at home. For 37 days, an interprofessional team-including a KMD, a nurse, and a social worker-provided care structured in three phases: initial assessment, transition to comfort-focused care, and end-of-life support. Interventions included daily monitoring via mobile messenger, shared decision-making, symptom management with Korean medicine, and proactive family support.Results: The patient died at home as wished. Her primary guardian reported high satisfaction and a positive bereavement experience, attributing this to continuous communication and education.Conclusion: A KMD-led interprofessional team can effectively deliver patient-centered end-of-life care, supporting the realization of “Death in Place.“

Source: The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine

DOI: 10.22246/jikm.2025.46.4.973

Authors: Hanbit Jin, Kyung-Hwan Kim, Hoyoel Bang, Myung-Ho Kim

Institutions: Dongshin University, Woosuk University

Language: English

Topic: Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues

Subfield: Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: diamond

Funder: Ministry of Education