Chapter 11: Symptom control and care towards the end of life
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Care after death (last offices)
Definition
‘Care after death’ has historically been referred to as ‘last offices’, a term related to the Latin officium, meaning ‘service’ or ‘duty’, which was associated with the military. This term also has religious connotations from its association with ‘last rites’, a Christian sacrament and prayer administered to the dying (Quested and Rudge [122]). It is used to refer to the final act performed on a person's body.
