Two out of three nurses now believe staff shortages prevent good care for people in their final hours.
Last year in the same survey the figure was just over one in three.
The Nursing Standard and the charity Marie Curie, which helps the terminally ill, quizzed 5,350 nurses.
A third said they did not get support to manage grief and emotional stress and 57%
identified not enough time spent with patients as a reason for poor care. This was up from 25% in 2018.
The poll suggests the NHS staffing crisis, with at least 40,000 vacancies, has hit end of life care.
One nurse said: “If the patient passed away we wouldn’t stop because we have others to look after.”
Another added: “I had 10 patients die within six weeks, five aged 45 to 55.
“I was told if I needed management support perhaps I was in the wrong job.”
Julie Pearce, nursing director at Marie Curie, said: “Staff are doing their best to do the right thing for patients, but are feeling hard-pressed. There seems to be more fragmentation in services, which affects vital continuity of care for patients.
“There is only one opportunity to get end of life care right and when it doesn’t go well it can affect a family for years.”
Nine out of 10 nurses told the 2019 survey the dying were stuck in hospital waiting for arrangements to leave.
Some 29% said a lack of community services in a patient’s home, or space in a care home or hospice was a problem.
Amanda Cheesley, of the Royal College of Nursing said: “Staff shortages are placing nurses under intolerable strain right across the NHS.
“Nurses caring for people at the end of life feel unable to provide the care these patients and their families should have.
“It’s time to change the law so ministers and local NHS providers are explicitly accountable for making sure the NHS is safely staffed.”
Flavia Munn, editor of Nursing Standard, said: “The experiences of nurses make heart-breaking reading.”
The Department of Health and Social Care said: “There are over 17,100 more nurses on our wards since 2010, with 52,000 more training. We are committed to ensuring their mental and physical health is fully supported at work.”
