Work package 9 = analysis of laws and regulations on palliative care and euthanasia 
Work package 10 = analysis of (non-competent) minors
Work package 11 = trend analysis of end-of-life decisions 1998-2001-2006
Work package 12 = social inequalities in end of life care (palliative care and end-of-life decisions)
Work package 13 = systematic comparative analysis between Flanders and The Netherlands
Work package 14 = analysis of quality indicators of end-of-life care and monitoring systems (cross patient populations, and cross care settings)

Valorisation Potential

The valorisation potential at the level of patients is substantial: the yearly rate of people dying in Flanders is about 55.000. In about 33% of all deaths, the person died suddenly and unexpectedly and in about 67% the person was ill and treated by health care providers. In 40% of all deaths, dying was preceded by at least one an end-of-life decision. Hence, one could say that the overall societal valorisation potential is between 22,000 and 36,850 patients yearly. Also from the societal impact point of view, the valorisation potential of the consortium is substantial. Because the consortium members have a wide network of interactions with the care providers, health care organisations and policy makers, the exploitation of the results of this project is guaranteed.

Valorisation strategy

Apart from scientific output in PhD thesises, articles in peer reviewed (inter)national journals and scientific (inter)national conferences, different additional valorisation outcome-products will be produced by this research project: data, instruments en policy-evaluation reports.

• This research will develop scientific information for other agencies and organisations on which to base clinical guidelines, performance measures, and other quality improvement tools
• Data and results of this research will be distributed on regular basis in Flanders via e.g. the yearly LEIFforum, and the yearly Conference of the Federation of Palliative Care Flanders. Researchers, health care trainees, health care professionals and policy makers attend both conferences.
• Different instruments will be made public in this project, e.g. advanced directives for end-of-life care, an improved registrationform for the notification of euthanasia, a proposition for an improved death certificate form, hospital and nursing homes policy protocols, etc.
• Different evaluation reports for caregivers, professional organisations, end-of-life care institutions and the health care authorities will be published and distributed.
• The project is aiming at the development and testing of quality indicators for end-of-life care and methods to monitor the (cross setting) quality of end of life care in Flanders. The project will review all possible monitoring methods and will test some of these.
• In order to evaluate end-of-life decisions, this project will analyse trends in the (estimated) incidences of end-of-life decisions in medical practice in Flanders, including euthanasia, non-treatment decisions and alleviation of pain and symptoms with possible life shortening.
• In order to evaluate the present law on euthanasia, this study will come out with the estimated percentage of reported cases of euthanasia, versus the overall estimated incidence of euthanasia.
• This study will evaluate the present notification and evaluation procedure for euthanasia cases.
• The study will also explore the relationship between (quality of) palliative care and the occurance of end-of-life decisions in medical practice.