Care of the Dying Evaluation (CODE™) is a self-completion post-bereavement questionnaire, based on the key components of best practice in end of life care. It assesses quality of care for the dying through 32 main questions, reflecting core palliative care principles. Ten additional questions focus on demographic details.
Developed and managed by Dr Catriona Mayland, CODE™ is a user-friendly, comprehensive outcome measure for care of the dying that can be used to benchmark individual organisations and identify areas for improvement, as well as in the context of research studies.
CODE™ has been widely translated and is now available in 11 languages, with more in development including Japanese, Mandarin, Thai, and Kannada (Indian dialect).
If you would like to use CODE™ to evaluate the care that is provided in your own setting, please use the button below to make an initial enquiry.
CODE™ is available in the following languages:
English
German
Norwegian
Polish
Slovenian
Swedish
Dutch
Icelandic
Persian
Portuguese
Spanish
CODE™ PUBLICATIONS
The CODE™ evidence base is robust and ever-developing. Below you can find links to a range of papers relating to the international use of CODE™, and those relating to the tool's original development, validation, and use.
International use of Care of the Dying Evaluation
Assessing quality of care for the dying from the bereaved relatives' perspective: Using pre-testing survey methods across seven countries to develop an international outcome measure
Mayland CR, Gerlach C, Sigurdardottir K, Hansen MIT, Leppert W, Stachowiak A, Krajewska M, Garcia-Yanneo E, Tripodoro VA, Goldraij G, Weber M, Zambon L, Passarini JN, Saad IB, Ellershaw J, Haugen DF
Palliat Med
2019, Mar
Factors affecting quality of end-of-life hospital care - a qualitative analysis of free text comments from the i-CODE survey in Norway
Hansen MIT, Haugen DF, Sigurdardottir KR, Kvikstad A, Mayland CR, Schaufel MA; ERANet-LAC CODE project group
BMC Palliat Care
2020, July
Good Quality Care for Cancer Patients Dying in Hospitals, but Information Needs Unmet: Bereaved Relatives' Survey within Seven Countries
Haugen DF, Hufthammer KO, Gerlach C, Sigurdardottir K, Hansen MIT, Ting G, Tripodoro VA, Goldraij G, Yanneo EG, Leppert W, Wolszczak K, Zambon L, Passarini JN, Saad IAB, Weber M, Ellershaw J, Mayland CR; ERANet-LAC CODE Project Group
Oncologist
2021, July
Validation of “Care of the Dying Evaluation” in Emergency Medicine (CODE-EM): Pilot Phase of End-of-life Management Protocol Offered Within Emergency Room (EMPOWER) Study
Chua MT, Kuan WS, Zheng CQ, Tiah L, Kumar R, Wong YKY, Lin J, Liang S, Mayland CR, Shi L, Ibrahim I, Pal RY
Ann Palliat Med
2021, June
One chance to get it right: improving clinical handovers for better symptom control at the end of life
Goldraij G, Tripodoro VA, Aloisio M, Castro SA, Gerlach C, Mayland CR, Haugen DF; ERANet-LAC CODE Project Group
BMJ Open Qual
2021, September
Validation of 'Care Of the Dying Evaluation' (CODETM) within an international study exploring bereaved relatives' perceptions about quality of care in the last days of life.
Mayland CR, Keetharuth AD, Mukuria C, Haugen DF
J Pain Symptom Manage
2022, March
What do bereaved relatives of cancer patients dying in hospital want to tell us? Analysis of free-text comments from the International Care of the Dying Evaluation (i-CODE) survey: a mixed methods approach
Gerlach C, Baus M, Gianicolo E, Bayer O, Haugen DF, Weber M, Mayland CR; ERANet-LAC CODE Core scientific group
Support Care Cancer
2023, December
Hospital care for the dying patient with cancer: does an advance care planning invitation influence bereaved relatives' experiences? A two-country survey.
Hjorth NE, Hufthammer KO, Sigurdardottir K, Tripodoro VA, Goldraij G, Kvikstad A, Haugen DF; ERANet-LAC CODE project group; Core scientific group.
BMJ Support Palliat Care
2024, January
Original development, validation and use of Care of the Dying Evaluation
Assessing the quality of care for dying patients from the bereaved relatives' perspective: further validation of "Evaluating care and health outcomes--for the dying
Mayland CR, Williams EM, Addington-Hall J, Cox TF, Ellershaw JE
J Pain Symptom Manage
2014, April
Caring for those who die at home: the use and validation of 'Care Of the Dying Evaluation' (CODE) with bereaved relatives
Mayland CR, Lees C, Germain A, Jack BA, Cox TF, Mason SR, West A, Ellershaw JE
BMJ Support Palliat Care
2014, June
The potential therapeutic value for bereaved relatives participating in research: An exploratory study
Germain A, Mayland CR and Jack B
Palliative and Supportive Care
2016, October
How well do we currently care for our dying patients in acute hospitals. The views of bereaved relatives?
Mayland CR, Mulholland H, Gambles M, Ellershaw JE
BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care
2017, September
Quality assurance for care of the dying: engaging with clinical services to facilitate a regional cross-sectional survey of bereaved relatives’ views
Mayland C, McGlinchey T, Gambles M, Mulholland H, Ellershaw J
BMC Health Serv Res
2018, October