Patterns of End-of-Life Care in Children With Advanced Solid Tumor Malignancies Enrolled on a Palliative Care Service

The timing and circumstances of the implementation of pediatric palliative care in Hungarian pediatric oncology

Despite the continuous improvement of pediatric palliative care, medical professionals still face various barriers regarding its implementation; our aim was to investigate this question in Hungarian pediatric oncology practice. Structured interviews were carried out in person with physicians from the Hungarian Pediatric Oncology Group (n = 22). Codes were generated inductively with the aid of Atlas.ti 6.0 software. Most physicians placed the palliative care discussion at the end of curative treatment (n = 21) and preferred to conduct it in a team setting (n = 18), mainly in the presence of a psychologist. Preparing parents for the child's death can occur during the palliative care discussion (n = 3), in the child's final days/h (n = 6), gradually (n = 10), or never (n = 3). There are words consciously utilized and avoided during this discussion, with the word "death" proving to be the most ambivalent (utilized n = 5, avoided n = 6).

CONCLUSIONS

There is no widely accepted unified practice among pediatric oncologists concerning the implementation of palliative care in Hungary. Despite the international recommendation, the common practice of timing is still at the end of curative treatment. Physicians rely on multidisciplinary teamwork, where the psychologist's role is the most prominent in this discussion. What is Known: • There is an international consensus that palliative care should commence at the diagnosis of a pediatric malignant disease regardless of illness outcome. • Barriers to the early implementation of palliative care in pediatric oncology involve resource-based and attitudinal factors. What is New: • In Hungary, where pediatric oncologists are sole decision-makers, early implementation of palliative care is rare. • There is a strong preference among physicians for working within a team, while also asserting that presence of team members may decrease the level of intimacy.

Pharmacological Management of Symptoms in Children with Life-Limiting Conditions at the End of Life in the Asia Pacific

BACKGROUND

The provision of pediatric palliative care in Asia Pacific varies between countries and availability of essential medications for symptoms at the end of life in this region is unclear.

OBJECTIVE

To determine medications available and used in the management of six symptoms at the end of life among pediatric palliative care practitioners in Asia Pacific. To identify alternative pharmacological strategies for these six symptoms if the oral route was no longer possible and injections are refused.

DESIGN AND SETTING

An online survey of all Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN) members was carried out to identify medications used for six symptoms (pain, dyspnea, excessive respiratory secretions, nausea/vomiting, restlessness, seizures) in dying children. Two scenarios were of interest: (1) hours to days before death and (2) when injectables were declined or refused.

RESULTS

There were 54 responses from 18 countries. Majority (63.0%) of respondents were hospital based. About half of all respondents were from specialist palliative care services and 55.6% were from high-income countries. All respondents had access to essential analgesics. Several perceived that there were no available drugs locally to treat the five other commonly encountered symptoms. There was a wide variation in preferred drugs for treating each symptom that went beyond differences in drug availability or formulations.

CONCLUSION

Future studies are needed to explore barriers to medication access and possible knowledge gaps among service providers in the region, so that advocacy and education endeavors by the APHN may be optimized.

Knowledge, Beliefs, and Behaviors Related to Palliative Care Delivery Among Pediatric Oncology Health Care Providers

The care of pediatric patients with cancer and their families is complex and rapidly evolving. Despite significant advances in outcomes, symptoms of the disease and complications of therapy continue to cause suffering that may improve with the involvement of pediatric palliative care (PPC) services. This descriptive study responds to the observation of great variability in PPC utilization within pediatric oncology. Data collected from 156 health care professionals (nurses, advanced practice professionals, and physicians) from a statewide hematology alliance evaluates the knowledge, beliefs, and perceived barriers to PPC involvement. Data analysis reveals significant variability when comparing respondents from professional roles and practice environments. Despite progress in PPC availability, care delivery remains incongruent with current recommendations. Knowledge gained from this study emphasizes the important role for all health care providers in advocating for support of PPC programs, educating the public, and committing to intentional involvement of PPC services while caring for pediatric oncology patients.

Predictors of Specialized Pediatric Palliative Care Involvement and Impact on Patterns of End-of-Life Care in Children With Cancer

Purpose

The impact of specialized pediatric palliative care (SPPC) teams on patterns of end-of-life care is unknown. We sought to determine (1) which children with cancer access SPPC and (2) the impact of accessing SPPC on the risk of experiencing high-intensity end-of-life care (intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation, or in-hospital death).

Methods

Using a provincial childhood cancer registry, we assembled a retrospective cohort of Ontario children with cancer who died between 2000 and 2012 and received care through pediatric institutions with an SPPC team. Patients were linked to population-based administrative data capturing inpatient, outpatient, and emergency visits. Children were classified as having SPPC, general palliative care, or no palliative care on the basis of SPPC clinical databases, physician billing codes, or inpatient diagnosis codes.

Results

Of the 572 children, 166 (29%) received care from an SPPC team for at least 30 days before death, and 100 (17.5%) received general palliative care. SPPC involvement was significantly less likely for children with hematologic cancers (OR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.3 to 0.4), living in the lowest income areas (OR, 0.4; 95% CI, 0.2 to 0.8), and living further from the treatment center (OR, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.4 to 0.5). SPPC was associated with a five-fold decrease in odds of intensive care unit admission (OR, 0.2; 95% CI, 0.1 to 0.4), whereas general palliative care had no impact. Similar associations were seen with all secondary indicators.

Conclusion

When available, SPPC, but not general palliative care, is associated with lower intensity care at the end of life for children with cancer. However, access remains uneven. These results provide the strongest evidence to date supporting the creation of SPPC teams.

Associations Between Pediatric Palliative Care Consultation and End-of-Life Preparation at an Academic Medical Center: A Retrospective EHR Analysis

OBJECTIVES

Our aim in this study was to understand usage patterns of pediatric palliative care (PPC) consultation and associations with end-of-life preparation among pediatric patients who are deceased.

METHODS

We reviewed 233 pediatric mortalities. Data extraction from the electronic health record included determination of PPC consultation by using Current Procedural Terminology codes. Diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease codes and were classified into categories of life-threatening complex chronic conditions (LT-CCCs). Data analysis included Student's t test, Wilcoxon rank test, Fisher's exact test, χ² test, and multivariable logistic regression.

RESULTS

The overall PPC consultation rate for pediatric patients who subsequently died was 24%. A PPC consultation for patients admitted to the pediatric ward and PICU was more likely than for patients cared for in the NICU (31% vs 12%, P < .01) and was more likely for those with an LT-CCC (40% vs 10%, P < .01), particularly malignancy (65% vs 35%, P < .01). Also noted were increased completion of Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment forms (8 vs 0, P < .01) and increased documentation of mental health disorders (60% vs 40%, P = .02).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that PPC consultation for patients in the pediatric ward and PICU is more likely among patients with a greater number of LT-CCCs, and is associated with increased Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment preparation and documentation of mental health disorders. Patients at risk to not receive PPC consultation are those with acute illness and patients in the NICU.

Pediatric palliative oncology: the state of the science and art of caring for children with cancer

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Pediatric palliative oncology (PPO) is an emerging field that integrates the principles of palliative care early into the illness trajectory of children with cancer. PPO providers work with interdisciplinary clinicians to provide optimal medical and psychosocial care to children with cancer and their families. Ongoing advances in the field of pediatric oncology, including new treatment options for progressive cancers, necessitate the early integration of palliative care tenets including holistic care, high-quality communication, and assessment and management of refractory symptoms.

RECENT FINDINGS

Research in this emerging field has expanded dramatically over the past several years. This review will focus on advancements within several key areas of the field, specifically regarding investigation of the communication needs and preferences of patients and families, exploration of educational initiatives and interventions to teach PPO principles to clinicians, study of patient-reported and parent-reported tools to better assess and manage refractory symptoms, and development of novel models to integrate palliative care within pediatric oncology.

SUMMARY

Research findings in the field of PPO, concurrent with advances in the treatment of pediatric cancer, may help improve survival and quality of life for children with cancer.

Patterns and Outcomes of Care in Children With Advanced Heart Disease Receiving Palliative Care Consultation

CONTEXT

Although access to subspecialty pediatric palliative care (PPC) is increasing, little is known about the role of PPC for children with advanced heart disease (AHD).

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to examine features of subspecialty PPC involvement for children with AHD.

METHODS

This is a retrospective single-institution medical record review of patients with a primary diagnosis of AHD for whom the PPC team was initially consulted between 2011 and 2016.

RESULTS

Among 201 patients, 87% had congenital/structural heart disease, the remainder having acquired/nonstructural heart disease. Median age at initial PPC consultation was 7.7 months (range 1 day-28.8 years). Of the 92 patients who were alive at data collection, 73% had received initial consultation over one year before. Most common indications for consultation were goals of care (80%) and psychosocial support (54%). At initial consultation, most families (67%) expressed that their primary goal was for their child to live as long and as comfortably as possible. Among deceased patients (n = 109), median time from initial consultation to death was 33 days (range 1 day-3.6 years), and children whose families expressed that their primary goal was for their child to live as comfortably as possible were less likely to die in the intensive care unit (P = 0.03) and more likely to die in the setting of comfort care or withdrawal of life-sustaining interventions (P = 0.008).

CONCLUSION

PPC involvement for children with AHD focuses on goals of care and psychosocial support. Findings suggest that PPC involvement at end of life supports goal-concordant care. Further research is needed to clarify the impact of PPC on patient outcomes.

Treatment intensity and symptom burden in hospitalized adolescent and young adult hematopoietic cell transplant recipients at the end of life

Adolescent and young adult (AYA) oncology patients experience many physical and psychological symptoms at the end of life (EOL); however, data on these experiences for AYA patients who have undergone hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) remains sparse. We sought to investigate the characteristics of AYA patients aged 15-25 years who received allogeneic HCT and subsequently died while inpatient at our institution between the years 2008 and 2014. A standardized data extraction tool was used to collect information about patient demographics, treatment and symptoms. We found that during this time frame, 34 AYA patients had received HCT and died while inpatient at our institution, 23 (68%) of whom died because of treatment-related complications. Compared with non-HCT AYA oncology patients (n=35), patients who received HCT (n=34) were more likely to have died in the intensive care unit (71% vs 23%, P<0 .0001) and to have received mechanical ventilation (68% vs 17%, P<0.0001) or hemodialysis (53% vs 0%, P<0.0001) in the last 30 days of life. These findings demonstrate that AYA patients who receive allogeneic HCT receive intensive EOL treatment, suggesting that these patients may benefit from early integration of expert interdisciplinary services to prospectively assess and manage distressing symptoms.

Pediatric Cardiology Provider Attitudes About Palliative Care: A Multicenter Survey Study

While availability of palliative care consultation for children with advanced heart disease increases, little is known about cardiologist attitudes towards palliative care. We sought to describe perspectives of cardiologists regarding palliative care and to characterize their perceived competence in palliative care concepts. A cross-sectional survey of pediatric cardiologists and cardiac surgeons from 19 pediatric medical centers was performed. Overall response rate was 31% (183/589). Respondents had a median of 18 years of experience since medical school (range 2-49) and most practiced at academic centers (91%). Sixty-percent of respondents felt that palliative care consultations occur "too late" and the majority (85%) agreed that palliative care consultations are helpful. Barriers to requesting palliative care consultation were most frequently described as "referring to palliative care services too early will undermine parents' hope" (45%) and "concern that parents will think I am giving up on their child" (56%). Only 33% of cardiologists reported feeling "very" or "moderately" competent in prognosticating life expectancy while over 60% felt competent caring for children with heart disease around end of life, and nearly 80% felt competent discussing goals of care and code status. Greater perceived competence was associated with subspecialty (heart failure/intensivist vs. other) (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.6-8.1, p = 0.003) and didactic training (OR 6.27, 95% CI 1.8-21.8, p = 0.004). These results underscore the need for further training in palliative care skills for pediatric cardiologists. Enhancing palliative care skills among cardiologists and facilitating partnership with subspecialty palliative care teams may improve overall care of children with advanced heart disease.

Patients' and Parents' Needs, Attitudes, and Perceptions About Early Palliative Care Integration in Pediatric Oncology

Importance

Early palliative care integration for cancer patients is now touted as the optimal care model, yet significant barriers often prevent its implementation. A perceived barrier, especially for pediatric oncology patients, is the notion that patients and their families may not need or want palliative care involvement early in the disease trajectory.

Objective

To determine the perception of symptom burden early in treatment and assess attitudes toward early integration of palliative care in pediatric oncology patient-parent pairs.

Design, Setting, and Participants

Novel but pretested survey tools were administered to 129 patient-parent dyads of hospital-based pediatric oncology ambulatory clinics and inpatient units between September 2011 and January 2015. All patient participants were aged between 10 and 17 years and were diagnosed as having an oncologic condition 1 month to 1 year before enrollment. Both the patient and the parent in the dyad spoke English, and all participating parents provided written informed consent. A convenience sample was used for selection, with participants screened when otherwise presenting at a participating site. A total of 280 eligible participants were approached for study inclusion, 258 of whom were enrolled in the study (92.1% positive response-rate).

Main Outcomes and Measures

Degree of perceived suffering from early symptom-related causes, attitudes toward early palliative care integration, and patient-parent concordance. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, calculation of concordance, McNemar test results, and Cochran-Armitage trend test results.

Results

Of the 129 patients in the dyads, 68 were boys, and 61 girls; of the 129 parents, 15 were men, and 114 women. Patients reported the following symptoms in the first month of cancer therapy: nausea (n = 109; 84.5%), loss of appetite (n = 97; 75.2%), pain (n = 96; 74.4%), anxiety (n = 77; 59.7%), constipation (n = 69; 53.5%), depression (n = 64; 49.6%), and diarrhea (n = 52; 40.3%). A large proportion of those reporting suffering indicated substantial suffering severity from specific symptoms (ie, a great deal or a lot) including nausea, 52.3% (57 of 109), loss of appetite, 50.5% (49 of 97), constipation 30.4% (21 of 69), pain 30.2% (29 of 96), anxiety 28.6% (22 of 77), depression 28.1% (18 of 64), and diarrhea 23.1% (12 of 52). Few children and parents expressed opposition to early palliative care involvement (2 [1.6%] and 8 [6.2%]) or perceived any detrimental effects on their relationship with their oncologist (6 [4.7%] and 5 [3.9%]), loss of hope (3 [2.3%] and 10 [7.8%]), or therapy interference (3 [2.3%] and 2 [1.6%], respectively). Intradyad concordance was low overall: 26% to 29% for exact concordance and 40% to 69% for agreement within 1 response category. Significant differences in patient-parent attitudes toward aspects of early palliative care included child participants being more likely than their parents (40.3% [n = 52] vs 17.8% [n = 23]) to indicate that palliative care would have been helpful for treating their symptoms (P < .001).

Conclusions and Relevance

Pediatric oncology patients experience a high degree of symptom-related suffering early in cancer therapy, and very few patients or parents in this study expressed negative attitudes toward early palliative care. Our findings suggest that pediatric oncology patients and families might benefit from, and are not a barrier to, early palliative care integration in oncology.

Trends in Hospital Utilization and Costs among Pediatric Palliative Care Recipients

OBJECTIVE AND BACKGROUND

Few previous studies have explored how pediatric palliative care (PPC) influences hospital utilization. We evaluated this among PPC recipients in a single center.

METHODS

This is a retrospective cohort study of 109 patients ≥2 years of age who received PPC consultation at a large quaternary children's hospital from April 2009 to September 2010. We assessed frequencies of hospital admissions and emergency department (ED) visits, use of intensive interventions, and hospital costs. Generalized estimating equations were used to compare outcomes in the two years before and after PPC consultation, stratifying by whether a patient survived two or more years following PPC enrollment.

RESULTS

Median age at PPC consultation was 13 years (interquartile range 6-18); 56.0% were male (n = 61), 69.7% white non-Hispanic (n = 76). Fifty-nine percent (n = 64) of patients died during the study period. Overall, annual hospital admission rates decreased from 4.6 (95% confidence interval [CI] 4.0-5.4) before PPC consultation to 3.7 (95% CI 3.4-4.4) after (p = 0.025). Annual ED visits decreased from 0.9 (95% CI 0.7-1.2) to 0.6 (95% CI 0.4-0.8) (p = 0.030). Survivors had significantly decreased hospital admissions [rate ratio (RR) 0.57 (95% CI 0.45-0.73), p < 0.001] and ED visits [RR 0.33 (95% CI 0.20-0.54), p < 0.001]. Decedents had increased intensive care unit use (p = 0.029) but decreased operations (p = 0.002); survivors experienced no change in these outcomes after PPC consultation. Hospital costs remained stable for all (p = 0.929).

DISCUSSION

PPC involvement may contribute to decreased hospital and ED use, without escalating costs. These outcomes are most evident in survivors. Hence, PPC may have a measurable long-term impact on hospital use in seriously ill children.

Palliative Care in Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer

BACKGROUND

Cancer survival rates for adolescents and young adults (AYA) have not improved over time relative to children or adults older than 39 years of age. Palliative care is specialized medical care focused on the control of symptoms and relief of suffering with the goal of improving quality of life for the patient and his or her family. To date, the integration of palliative care in AYA patients with cancer remains suboptimal.

METHODS

We explore the role of palliative care in the continuum of clinical care for AYA patients with cancer.

RESULTS

Clinical practice guidelines highlight the need for integrating palliative care for all patients with cancer, including the AYA population. Despite this, a paucity of evidence exists regarding the use of palliative care with AYA patients with cancer. Graduate clinical education represents an opportunity to promote the full inclusion and early integration of palliative care in the care of AYA patients with cancer. Advance care planning is one area where some agreement exists on the unique needs of AYA patients and their families.

CONCLUSIONS

In general, palliative care is seen as being synonymous with end-of-life care for patients with cancer. However, the emerging trend toward standardizing oncology care to meet the unique medical, psychosocial, and supportive care needs of AYA patients with cancer and their families represents an opportunity for health care professionals to collaborate early with palliative care specialists to control symptoms and relieve suffering in this vulnerable population.

Specialist Pediatric Palliative Care Referral Practices in Pediatric Oncology: A Large 5-year Retrospective Audit

Purpose:

To audit referral practices of pediatric oncologists referred to specialist pediatric palliative care services.

Patients and Methods:

Retrospective review of medical case records of pediatric palliative care patients over a period of 5 years from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2014. Descriptive summaries of demographic, clinical variables, and patient circumstances at the time of referral and during end-of-life care were examined.

Results:

A total of 1135 patients were referred from pediatric oncology with a gradual increasing trend over 5 years. About 84.6% consultations took place in the outpatient setting. In 97.9% of the cases, parents were the primary caregivers. Availability of specialist pediatric health-care services at local places was available in 21.2% cases and 48% families earned <5000 INR (approximately 73 USD) in a month. Around 28.3% of the referrals were from leukemia clinic and maximum references were late with 72.4% patients having advanced disease at presentation. 30.3% of the referrals were made for counseling and communication and 54.2% had high symptom burden during referral. After referral, 21.2% patients continued with oral metronomic chemotherapy and 10.5% were referred back to oncology services for palliative radiotherapy. Only 4.9% patients had more than 2 follow-ups. 90.8% of the patients were cared for at home in the last days of illness by local general practitioners. 70.6% of the deaths were anticipated.

Conclusions:

Oncologists referred patients late in the course of disease trajectory. Most of the referrals were made for counseling and communication, but many patients had high symptom burden during referral.

Helping parents live with the hole in their heart: The role of health care providers and institutions in the bereaved parents' grief journeys

BACKGROUND

Bereaved parents experience significant psychosocial and health sequelae, suggesting that this population may benefit from the ongoing extension of support and resources throughout the grief journey. The interaction of hospital staff with patients and families at the end of a child's life and after death profoundly affects parental grief, offering a unique opportunity for the medical community to positively impact the bereavement experience. The current study was conducted to explore the role of the health care team and medical institutions in the grief journeys of parents whose child died a cancer-related death.

METHODS

Eleven bereaved parents participated in 2 focus groups. Responses to each of the 3 main prompts were coded and analyzed independently using semantic content analysis techniques.

RESULTS

Four main concepts were identified within the parental narratives, including the importance of strong and ongoing relationships between providers and bereaved families, the importance of high-quality communication, the effect of negative experiences between providers and families on parental grief, and the importance of the institution's role in the grief journeys of bereaved parents.

CONCLUSIONS

Bereaved parents consistently identified the critical role played by medical staff and medical institutions throughout the grief journey. Key components of bereavement support identified by parents should serve to guide the actions of providers as well as provide a template for the development of a comprehensive bereavement program within an institution. Cancer 2016. © 2016 American Cancer Society. Cancer 2016;122:2757-2765. © 2016 American Cancer Society.

Early Integration of Palliative Care for Children with High-Risk Cancer and Their Families

Despite increasing data to support pediatric palliative care (PPC) as an integral component of high-quality care for children with life-threatening conditions and their families, timely integration of PPC is offered inconsistently to children with high-risk cancer. In this review, we summarize the growing body of literature in support of early integration of PPC for children with high-risk cancer and their families, advocating that PPC principles and resources are imperative to holistic cancer-directed care and rooted in evidence-based medicine. Finally, we offer possible strategies for optimizing integration of PPC into holistic cancer care for children and families.

End-of-Life Care Patterns Associated with Pediatric Palliative Care among Children Who Underwent Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant

Stem cell transplantation (SCT) is an intensive therapy offering the possibility of cure for life-threatening conditions but with risk of serious complications and death. Outcomes associated with pediatric palliative care (PPC) for children who undergo SCT are unknown. Therefore, we evaluated whether PPC consultation is associated with differences in end-of-life (EOL) care patterns for children who underwent SCT and did not survive. Medical records of children who underwent SCT at Boston Children's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for any indication from September 2004 to December 2012 and did not survive were reviewed. Child demographic and clinical characteristics and PPC consultation and EOL care patterns were abstracted. Children who received PPC (PPC group) were compared with those who did not (non-PPC group). Children who received PPC consultation (n = 37) did not differ from the non-PPC group (n = 110) with respect to demographic or clinical characteristics, except they were more likely to have undergone unrelated allogeneic SCT (PPC, 68%; non-PPC, 39%; P = .02) or to have died from treatment-related toxicity (PPC, 76%; non-PPC, 54%; P = .03). PPC consultation occurred at a median of .7 months (interquartile range [IQR], .4 to 4.2) before death. PPC consultations most commonly addressed goals of care/decision-making (92%), psychosocial support (84%), pain management (65%), and non-pain symptom management (70%). Prognosis discussions (ie, the likelihood of survival) occurred more commonly in the PPC group (PPC, 97%; non-PPC, 83%; P = .04), as did resuscitation status discussions (PPC, 88%; non-PPC, 58%; P = .002). These discussions also occurred earlier in the PPC group, for prognosis a median of 8 days (IQR, 4 to 26) before death compared with 2 days (IQR, 1 to 13) in the non-PPC group and for resuscitation status a median of 7 days (IQR, 3 to 18) compared with 2 days (IQR, 1 to 5) in the non-PPC group (P < .001 for both of the timing of prognosis and resuscitation status discussions). The PPC group was also was more likely to have resuscitation status documented (PPC, 97%; non-PPC, 68%; P = .002). With respect to patterns of care, compared with non-PPC, the PPC group was as likely to die in a medicalized setting (ie, the hospital) (PPC, 84%; non-PPC, 77%; P = .06) or have hospice care (PPC, 22%; non-PPC, 18%; P = .6). However, among children who died in the hospital, those who received PPC were more likely to die outside the intensive care unit (PPC, 80%; non-PPC, 58%; P = .03). In addition, the PPC group was less likely to receive intervention-focused care such as intubation in the 24 hours before death (PPC, 42%; non-PPC, 66%; P = .02) or cardiopulmonary resuscitation (PPC, 3%; non-PPC, 20%; P = .03) at EOL. Children who received PPC for at least a month were more likely to receive hospice care (PPC, 41%; non-PPC, 5%; P = .01). Children who underwent SCT and did not survive were likely to die in a medicalized setting, irrespective of PPC. However, PPC was associated with less intervention-focused care and greater opportunity for EOL communication and advance preparation. In the intense, cure-oriented SCT setting, PPC may facilitate advance care planning in this high-risk population.