Healthcare use and costs in the last year of life: a national population data linkage study.

Hospitalisation near the end of life was least frequent for older people and those living rurally, although length of stay for both groups, when they were admitted, was longer. Research is required to understand if variation in hospitalisation is due to variation in the quantity or quality of end-of-life care available, varying community support, patient preferences or an inevitable consequence of disease-specific needs.