• M L Campbell and R R Frank.
• Comprehensive Supportive Care Team, Detroit Receiving Hospital, MI, USA.
• Crit. Care Med. 1997 Jan 1; 25 (1): 197-202.

ObjectiveTo describe a 10-yr experience with an end-of-life practice in a hospital.DesignA nonexperimental, prospective, descriptive design was used to record variables from a convenience sample of patients transferred to the Comprehensive Supportive Care Team.SettingDetroit Receiving Hospital is an urban, university-affiliated, Level I trauma/emergency hospital.PatientsPatients who are not expected to survive hospitalization, and for whom a decision has been made to focus care on palliative interventions, are candidates for care by this practice.InterventionsNone.Measurements And Main ResultsPatient demographics, including the following information: age, gender; diagnoses; illness severity; mortality rate; and disposition. Measures of resource utilization included: referral sources; Therapeutic intervention Scoring System values; bed costs; and length of hospital stay. Satisfactory patient/family care with a measurable reeducation in the use of resources can be achieved in the hospital setting.ConclusionsA hands-on approach to the care of dying patients by this specialty, palliative care service has provided patients, families, and clinicians with the type of support needed for satisfactory end-of-life care. A summary of our experience may be useful to others.

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