La « fin de vie » des personnes handicapées vivant en institutions médicosociales : une construction conceptuelle

Technical and scientific progress in medicine has significantly lengthened the life expectancy of people with disabilities. Gradually the associations caring for them have developed a number of nursing facilities to support them as they age. The loss of independence due to disability (or multiple disabilities) is compounded by problems of ageing and disease, requiring competent medical intervention and inevitably leading to an increase in deaths. Although the sector has been able to inspire a truly remarkable “support culture”, these associations still have problems accompanying the people they support until their natural end. In response to those difficulties, the French national end-of-life observatory recommends that “end-of-life support and palliative care should be a priority in staff training for professionals working in nursing homes and skilled nursing homes caring for people with disabilities.” We, on the other hand, argue that the idea that training in palliative care or end-of-life management would help those institutions is mere illusion. The English version of this article is available online.