Journal of palliative medicine
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Importance: Quality measures of palliative and end-of-life care relevant to patients with advanced cancer have been developed, but few are in routine use. It is unclear which of these measures are most important for providing patient- and family-centered care and have high potential for improving quality of care. Objective: To prioritize process quality measures for assessing delivery of patient- and family-centered palliative and end-of-life cancer care in US Veterans Affairs (VA) health care facilities. ⋯ Measure concepts having postpanel median ratings ≥7 and nominated by one or more panelists as "top 5" on either attribute comprised a shortlist of 20 measure concepts. Conclusions: A panel of expert stakeholders helped prioritize 64 measure concepts into a shortlist of 20. Half of the shortlisted measures were related to communication about patient preferences and decision making, and half were related to symptom assessment and treatment.
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Observational Study
Does Integration of Palliative Care and Infection Management Reduce Hospital Transfers among Nursing Home Residents?
Background: An estimated 50% of nursing home (NH) residents experience hospital transfers in their last year of life, often due to infections. Hospital transfers due to infection are often of little clinical benefit to residents with advanced illness, for whom aggressive treatments are often ineffective and inconsistent with goals of care. Integration of palliative care and infection management (i.e., merging the goals of palliative care and infection management at end of life) may reduce hospital transfers for residents with advanced illness. ⋯ Among residents with advanced CHF, integration intensity was not associated with either outcome. Conclusions: NH policies aimed to promote integration of palliative care and infection management may reduce burdensome hospital transfers for residents with advanced dementia. For residents with advanced CHF and COPD, alternative strategies may be needed to promote best practices for infection management at end of life.
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Background: Head and neck cancer was the fourth-most common cause of cancer death among Taiwanese men in 2018. Hospice care has been proven to reduce the use of invasive medical interventions and expenditures in caring for cancer patients. Aim: This study examined the effects of hospice care for terminal head and neck cancer patients. ⋯ The mean medical expenditure per person in the six months before death was 460,531 New Taiwan Dollar (NTD) for the nonhospice group and 389,079 NTD for those provided hospice care for more than three months, which was the lowest amount among various hospice enrollment durations. Conclusions: Hospice care can effectively reduce the use of invasive medical interventions in caring for terminal head and neck cancer patients and may improve their quality of death. Moreover, hospice care enrollment for more than three months can save on unnecessary medical expenditures for terminal head and neck cancer patients.
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Background: Parents previously identified eight core functions of communication with clinicians in pediatric oncology. Objective: To determine clinicians' views on communication functions in pediatric oncology. Design: In 10 focus groups with 59 clinicians at two academic centers, we asked open-ended questions about communication goals and purposes. ⋯ After reviewing the eight functions described by parents, all clinicians agreed with the framework: building relationships, exchanging information, making decisions, enabling family self-management, managing uncertainty, responding to emotions, supporting hope, and providing validation. Conclusions: Pediatric oncology clinicians corroborated this functional communication framework. Clinicians and researchers can utilize this framework to guide care and research in the future.
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Introduction: The palliative care (PC) pharmacist's role within PC teams is increasingly recognized with favorable outcomes being reported. Methods: Retrospective study evaluated hospitalized adults seen by PC pharmacists, as part of PC consultation team at three California institutions. The primary objective was to categorize pharmacists' interventions. ⋯ Significantly decreased LOS was found when PC pharmacist was involved within 72 hours of initial PC consultation and when served as lead clinician. Improved symptom goal attainment was demonstrated for pain, dyspnea, anxiety, and constipation. In summary, integration of a PC pharmacist on a PC team can be relied upon to provide patient-centered, transdisciplinary care and enhance symptom management.