ABSTRACT
Dying is not often discussed in the context of health, and indeed each could be viewed as the antithesis of the other. However, ‘health’ and ‘dying’ are not discrete states, and the degree of relativity between the two varies for philosophical as well as practical reasons. A good death which implies a degree of quality and dignity in the dying process is more closely aligned to the concept of health than a ‘good enough’ death or even a ‘bad’ death. Also, the ageing population in advanced industrialised societies1 has meant that the gradual decline of health to a state of ill health and further to a state of dying may be a protracted stage of a person’s life. Much of what happens to a person during this time of failing health and approaching death will be determined by the pathology of their disease as well as their physical strength and personal resolve. Yet individual characteristics cannot fully explain the circumstances of each person’s journey towards death. Cultural responses to dying and death as well as broader social structures frame the experience of each individual.
