• Dawon Baik, David Russell, Lizeyka Jordan, Daniel D Matlock, Frances Dooley, and Ruth Masterson Creber.
• College of Nursing, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA.
• Palliat Med. 2020 Jul 1; 34 (7): 925933925-933.

BackgroundDespite a majority of persons receiving hospice care in their homes, there are gaps in understanding how to facilitate goals of care conversations between persons with heart failure and healthcare providers.AimTo identify barriers and facilitators which shape goals of care conversations for persons with heart failure in the context of home hospice.DesignA qualitative descriptive study design was used with semi-structured interviews.Setting/ParticipantsWe conducted qualitative interviews with persons with heart failure, family caregivers, and interprofessional healthcare team members at a large not-for-profit hospice agency in New York City between March 2018 and February 2019.ResultsA total of 39 qualitative interviews were conducted, including with healthcare team members (e.g. nurses, physicians, social workers, spiritual counselors), persons with heart failure, and family caregivers. Three themes emerged from the qualitative interviews regarding facilitators and barriers in goals of care conversations for better decision-making: (1) trust is key to building and maintaining goals of care conversations; (2) lack of understanding and acceptance of hospice inhibits goals of care conversations; and (3) family support and engagement promote goals of care conversations.ConclusionFindings from this study suggest that interventions designed to improve goals of care conversations in the home hospice setting should focus on promoting understanding and acceptance of hospice, family support and engagement, and building trusting relationships with interprofessional healthcare teams.

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