Background: Presently many patients receiving palliative care choose to pass away in their homes. The purpose of palliative care is not to cure disease, but to reduce patient suffering. Palliative care in the home must be carried out in a safe and secure manner, where the integrity and autonomy of the patient is preserved. The goal is to allow the patient to spend their last period in life as pain free as possible and together with family and loved ones, and in doing so pass away in a dignified manner. To achieve good quality of care in palliative care, nurses follow through the four cornerstones which includes symptom relief, cooperation, communication and relationship and support to relatives.

Aim: The aim of the study was to describe the experiences of nurses giving end of life care in home settings.

Method: A literature-based study was used to reach a deeper understanding of the subjective experiences of nurses. Eight scientific studies were analyzed using Friberg’s five-step model.

Result: The two main themes were: nurse´s challenges in home care and nurse´s interactions in home care. Four subthemes emerged from the first main theme: time pressure and high workload, the need for knowledge in palliative care, emotional impact, working conditions in the individual homesetting. Three subthemes resulted from the second main theme: creating a caring relationship, safe and secure care in the home and collaboration in palliative care in the home.

Conclusion:The studies showed that nurses in home settings were subjects to high demands and challenges in their daily work, including a variety of emotional experiences. Support from the nurses’ employers and collaboration with other professions were important factors in managing end of life care of high quality.