Questionnements éthiques autour du « Je voudrais mourir chez moi »

“Let me die at home” is an expression many benevolent workers assisting palliative care teams have heard when visiting elderly persons in their homes or nursing institutions. We present here our thoughts on what “at home” means in this context. Based on interviews and observations, we note that “home” can be considered as a real, imaginary or symbolic entity. Beyond conscious desire, for the elderly person, to die at home is a way of expressing a yearning to be at home. Home is like an anchor, where body and inner self are united. Home is the personal environment, the support of personal identity enabling independence, freedom and self. Thus, home is important as a foundation of identity, as a physical and psychic space. This emphasizes the individual specificity of the desired place of death, which should not be generalized or anticipated too early.