Characters dying right after combat is too common I agree. They are usually poisoned and on fire, and when real time starts there's very often not time to cast a heal or drink a potion.
As it is currently, if they were just about to die you wouldn't have been able to save them even with a pause. 2 turns instantly pass the moment combat is over...
It would be nice if we could stay in combat and control our guys for a final turn after combat was over since the game forces us to eat the consequences as if 2 turns passed.