The complexities of communicating palliative care in Chinese-based languages

Chinese-based cultures have many distinctive traditions associated with the end of life, including limitations around the use of language. As in Western countries, palliative care services have developed in Chinese-based cultures in response to local needs. Language too has developed locally with little agreement on how palliative care is titled and described. This opinion paper raises the many complexities in endeavouring to understand how palliative care is portrayed in Chinese-based cultures