The Toll Death Takes: A Glimpse Into Home-Based Palliative Care Provision in India

Millions of people around the world die in pain or continue to live with serious health-related suffering. Palliative care is an approach that attempts to improve the quality of life of patients and their families, by relieving their pain holistically, across physical, psychological, social, and spiritual domains. Palliative care is practiced in a variety of ways in India, but the home-based palliative care model seems to be the most culturally appropriate and economically acceptable. This article analyzes home-based services offered across India by seven leading palliative care organizations, including elements that could be adapted into the country's public healthcare system, thereby providing relief and solace to the countless suffering, within their very homes.