Age, economics, diagnosis, ethnicity, marital status, and whether one enters a hospice service for (at least in part) respite were all associated to a certain extent with where one dies. These findings contribute to the growing evidence linking various factors, especially ethnic groups, with place of death.

Community hospice programmes may be associated with reduction in hospitalisation in patients with advanced COPD.

The parameters of what normal opioid prescribing is in the last days of life in NZ can be described from these data. There is value in repeating this exercise both for clinical governance and for professional reflection and self-assessment.