Palliative care needs of minorities

Even in ethnically and religiously diverse modern Britain, receiving high quality care at the end of life is possible and may, we hope, soon be probable for all. 2 3 Realising this aspiration will need fundamental changes on at least three fronts: tackling institutional discrimination in the provision of palliative care, progress in incorporating transcultural medicine into medical and nursing curriculums, and a greater willingness on the part of healthcare providers to embrace complexity and in so doing develop a richer appreciation of the challenges facing people from minority communities in achieving a good end. 4 The introduction of palliative care into health care is a relatively recent phenomenon, and even now these services are mainly focused on the needs of elderly people dying from cancer.