Letting go: a qualitative study of acute care and community nurses' perceptions of a 'good' versus a 'bad' death

Medical professionals' reluctance to diagnose ESHF and their tendency for curative medical treatments to patients even when death was imminent impeded palliation and contributed to a 'bad' death. Contradictory approaches to end-of-life care by palliative and cardiac teams ultimately impacted on the end-of-life trajectory experienced by the patient and family.