Objectives: As the result of illness trajectories, people with advanced chronic diseases are living with inability to perform major activities, often with pain, or other uncomfortable symptoms. Therefore, integrated life-threatening care, consequently, is very necessary to relieve suffering, implement life-prolonging treatments when possible and appropriate, improve quality of life, support the caregivers, and apply rehabilitation process. This research conducted qualitative method in order to investigate the people living with life-threatening illness and the caregivers’ perspectives toward health and sick, death and the dying process, also the need of palliative care services. Method: Data collections were conducted through in-depth interviews explored the perspective of the participants about the need of palliative care service. Three informants living with life-threatening disease (stroke, cancer, and lung disease) and two caregivers participated into this research. Data were analyzed with thematic content analysis and resulted 51 codes and 11 categorizations. Results: There are four main themes retrieved from this study stated that sick condition influences others, family as a part of the patients’ caring, death and dying is necessary to be discussed and prepared, also that end-of-life care should be provided for all. Conclusion: It is recommended that nurses should understand the competencies of palliative care. The skills will be important to deliver nursing care for patients and families living with life-threatening diseases. Nurses should also improve their knowledge and skills of end-of-life communication and pain management for the patients’ quality of life.

Qualitative, Palliative Care Need, Patient, Caregiver, Life-Threatening Illness, Yogyakarta, Indonesia