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Harris CM, Higgins C, Mehta AK. Trends in Specialty Palliative Care Service Utilization and In-Hospital Outcomes for Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. J Palliat Med 2024; 27:521-525. [PMID: 38324041 DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2023.0444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: Hospitalized people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may benefit from specialty palliative care services (sPCS). Objective: To describe access to in-hospital sPCS for people with ALS (pALS). Methods: We compared years 2010-2011 to 2018-2019, and conducted trend analyses of sPCS from 2010 to 2019 stratified by race. Results: Of 103,193 pALS admitted during the study period, 13,885 (13.4%) received sPCS. Rates of sPCS increased over time (2010-2011: 8.9% vs. 2018-2019: 16.6%; p < 0.01). From 2010 to 2019, there was an increase in sPCS (p-trend<0.01) for all studied racial groups. Conclusions: Access to palliative care has increased over time for pALS admitted to hospitals in the United States.
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Affiliation(s)
- Che M Harris
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | | | - Ambereen K Mehta
- Palliative Care Program, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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2
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Garg I, Gangu K, Zabel KM, Shuja H, Sohail AH, Nasrullah A, Sohail S, Combs SA, Sheikh AB. Trends in utilisation of palliative care services in COVID-19 patients and their impact on hospital resources in the USA: insights from the national inpatient sample. BMJ Support Palliat Care 2024:spcare-2023-004621. [PMID: 38135484 DOI: 10.1136/spcare-2023-004621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Poor prognosis and lack of effective therapeutic options have made palliative care an integral part of the management of severe COVID-19. However, clinical studies on the role of palliative care in severe COVID-19 patients are lacking. The objective of our study was to evaluate the utility of palliative care in intubated COVID-19 patients and its impact on in-hospital outcomes. METHODS Rate of palliative care consult, patient-level variables (age, sex, race, income, insurance type), hospital-level variables (region, type, size) and in-hospital outcome variables (mortality, cost, disposition, complications) were recorded. RESULTS We retrospectively analysed 263 855 intubated COVID-19 patients using National Inpatient Sample database from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020. 65 325 (24.8%) patients received palliative care consult. Factors associated with an increased rate of palliative care consults included: female gender (p<0.001), older age (p<0.001), Caucasian race (p<0.001), high household income (p<0.001), Medicare insurance (p<0.001), admission to large-teaching hospitals (p<0.001), patients with underlying comorbidities, development of in-hospital complications and the need for intensive care procedures. Patients receiving palliative consults had shorter hospital length of stay (LOS) (p<0.001) and no difference in hospitalisation cost (p=0.15). CONCLUSIONS Palliative care utilisation rate in intubated COVID-19 patients was reflective of disease severity and disparities in healthcare access. Palliative care may help reduce hospital LOS. Our findings also highlight importance of improving access to palliative care services and its integration into the multidisciplinary management of severe COVID-19 patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ishan Garg
- University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | - Karthik Gangu
- The University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas, USA
| | | | - Hina Shuja
- Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan
| | - Amir Humza Sohail
- NYU Langone Health, New York, New York, USA
- NYU Langone, NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Sara A Combs
- University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | - Abu Baker Sheikh
- University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
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3
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O'Donnell A, Gonyea J, Wensley T, Nizza M. High-quality patient-centered palliative care: interprofessional team members' perceptions of social workers' roles and contribution. J Interprof Care 2024; 38:1-9. [PMID: 37525994 DOI: 10.1080/13561820.2023.2238783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 08/02/2023]
Abstract
A core tenet of interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) is that efficient and effective teams are critical for the delivery of high-quality, patient-centered care. Although palliative care has a history of excellent care, increasing demands and larger patient loads are challenging teams to adapt and strengthen team functioning in hospital settings. The purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the IPCP contributions of advanced palliative social workers (PSWs) through the eyes of their colleagues. Twenty-four interprofessional palliative care (IPPC) team members from other professions (i.e. nurse practitioners, physicians, physician assistants) from 16 hospitals across the U.S. participated in 20-minute semi-structured interviews. The Patient-Centered Clinical Method (PCCM) was used as a conceptual model to aid in the interpretation of the data. This model illuminated the centrality of PSWs' role in building and sustaining a therapeutic alliance between the patient and the IPPC team, through assessing and promoting care that centers the patient's experience with illness, creating space to initiate, process and revisit difficult healthcare conversations and helping to modulate the pace and intensity of emotionally laden discussions. PSWs also support the therapeutic relationship with the IPPC team by providing continuity and connection across and during the hospital experience and supporting the well-being of the IPPC team. This study offers novel insights into how PSWs contribute to patient-centered IPPC and furthers the articulation of the role of PSWs in hospital settings.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Judith Gonyea
- School of Social Work, Boston University, Boston, USA
| | | | - Megan Nizza
- School of Social Work, Boston University, Boston, USA
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4
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Ali HJ, Sahay S. End-of-Life and Palliative Care Issues for Patients Living with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Barriers and Opportunities. Semin Respir Crit Care Med 2023; 44:866-876. [PMID: 37459883 DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1770124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a progressive, incurable disease that results in significant symptom burden, health care utilization, and eventually premature death. Despite the advancements made in treatment and management strategies, survival has remained poor. End-of-life care is a challenging issue in management of PAH, especially when patients are in younger age group. End-of-life care revolves around symptom palliation and reducing psychosocial disease burden for a dying patient and entails advanced care planning that are often challenging. Thus, support from palliative care specialist becomes extremely important in these patients. Early introduction to palliative care in patients with high symptom burden and psychosocial suffering is suggested. Despite of the benefits of an early intervention, palliative care remains underutilized in patients with PAH, and this significantly raises issues around end-of-life care in PAH. In this review, we will discuss the opportunities offered and the existing barriers in addressing high symptom burden and end-of-life care issues. We will focus on the current evidence, identify areas for future research, and provide a call-to-action for better guidance to PAH specialists in making timely, appropriate interventions that can help mitigate end-of-life care issues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyeon-Ju Ali
- Department of Cardiology, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas
| | - Sandeep Sahay
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Houston Methodist Lung Center, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas
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5
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Ren CC, Hayashi J. Despite perceived gaps, Medicare can help to cover palliative care. J Am Geriatr Soc 2023; 71:3660-3662. [PMID: 37224436 DOI: 10.1111/jgs.18421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2023] [Revised: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/29/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Clarissa C Ren
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Jennifer Hayashi
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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6
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Kim KM, Muench U, Maki JE, Yefimova M, Oh A, Jopling JK, Rinaldo F, Shah NR, Giannitrapani KF, Williams MY, Lorenz KA. Racial disparities in inpatient palliative care consultation among frail older patients undergoing high-risk elective surgical procedures in the United States: a cross-sectional study of the national inpatient sample. HEALTH AFFAIRS SCHOLAR 2023; 1:qxad026. [PMID: 38756238 PMCID: PMC10986263 DOI: 10.1093/haschl/qxad026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
Surgical interventions are common among seriously ill older patients, with nearly one-third of older Americans facing surgery in their last year of life. Despite the potential benefits of palliative care among older surgical patients undergoing high-risk surgical procedures, palliative care in this population is underutilized and little is known about potential disparities by race/ethnicity and how frailty my affect such disparities. The aim of this study was to examine disparities in palliative care consultations by race/ethnicity and assess whether patients' frailty moderated this association. Drawing on a retrospective cross-sectional study of inpatient surgical episodes using the National Inpatient Sample of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project from 2005 to 2019, we found that frail Black patients received palliative care consultations least often, with the largest between-group adjusted difference represented by Black-Asian/Pacific Islander frail patients of 1.6 percentage points, controlling for sociodemographic, comorbidities, hospital characteristics, procedure type, and year. No racial/ethnic difference in the receipt of palliative care consultations was observed among nonfrail patients. These findings suggest that, in order to improve racial/ethnic disparities in frail older patients undergoing high-risk surgical procedures, palliative care consultations should be included as the standard of care in clinical care guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyung Mi Kim
- Office of Research Patient Care Services, Stanford Health Care,Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States
- Clinical Excellence Research Center, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, United States
| | - Ulrike Muench
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, United States
- Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, United States
| | - John E Maki
- Saint Francis Memorial Hospital, San Francisco, CA 94109, United States
| | - Maria Yefimova
- Center for Nursing Excellence and Innovation, UCSF Health,San Francisco, CA 94143, United States
- Department of Physiological Nursing, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, United States
| | - Anna Oh
- Office of Research Patient Care Services, Stanford Health Care,Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States
| | - Jeffrey K Jopling
- Clinical Excellence Research Center, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
- Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21287, United States
| | - Francesca Rinaldo
- Clinical Excellence Research Center, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
| | - Nirav R Shah
- Clinical Excellence Research Center, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
| | - Karleen Frances Giannitrapani
- Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, US Department of Veterans Affairs,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
- Quality Improvement Resource Center for Palliative Care, Stanford University,Stanford, CA 94305, United States
- Primary Care and Population Health, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Stanford, CA 94305, United States
| | - Michelle Y Williams
- Office of Research Patient Care Services, Stanford Health Care,Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States
- Primary Care and Population Health, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Stanford, CA 94305, United States
| | - Karl A Lorenz
- Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, US Department of Veterans Affairs,Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States
- Quality Improvement Resource Center for Palliative Care, Stanford University,Stanford, CA 94305, United States
- Primary Care and Population Health, School of Medicine, Stanford University,Stanford, CA 94305, United States
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7
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Jackson I, Etuk A, Jackson N. Prevalence and Predictors of Palliative Care Utilization among Hospitalized Patients with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma. J Palliat Care 2023; 38:167-174. [PMID: 35006019 DOI: 10.1177/08258597211073226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Objective: Research has shown that palliative care improves the quality of life of cancer patients; however, there is no literature on specific factors that predict its use in diffuse large b-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients. Therefore, the prevalence of palliative care utilization and predictors of palliative care utilization among patients with DLBCL were examined. Methods: Data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) collected between 2016 to 2018 were used for all analyses. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine the predictors of palliative care utilization among hospitalized patients with DLBCL. Descriptive analyses were used to explore the overall prevalence of palliative care receipt in this population. Results: Of the 41,789 hospitalizations, 7.1% of patients used palliative care during hospitalization, while 4.8% utilized palliative care and were discharged alive. DLBCL patients aged 70 and older had 1.3 times (95% CI: 1.14-1.41) higher odds of utilizing palliative care compared to those less than 70 years. Relative to Medicare/Medicaid patients, those with other types of insurance were 1.7 times (95% CI: 1.34-2.05) more likely to receive palliative care. Those who were either transferred to a facility/discharged with home health (AOR: 6.23; 95% CI: 5.21-7.44) or died during hospitalization (AOR: 45.17; 95% CI: 36.98-55.17) had higher odds of receiving palliative care when relative to those with a routine hospital discharge. Other associated factors were type of admission, length of stay, chemotherapy receipt, and number of comorbidities. Conclusions: The prevalence of palliative care utilization was low and factors predicting utilization in our population were identified. Our findings highlight the need to increase awareness among medical oncologists on the need to involve the palliative care team early in the management of hospitalized patients with DLBCL.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Aniekeme Etuk
- University of Texas School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Nsikak Jackson
- University of Texas School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
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8
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Snijders R, Raijmakers N, Firouzian A, Kodde A, Kazimier H, Bols F, Zerstegen C, Brom L. Trends in Palliative Care Telephone Consultation Support for Health Care Professionals: A Dutch Nationwide Registry between 2004 and 2019. J Palliat Med 2023; 26:87-93. [PMID: 35994009 DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2022.0097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Regional palliative care consultation (PCC) teams aim to support health care professionals by telephone in providing quality palliative care (PC) in the Netherlands. Objectives: The study aims to assess trends in the number and characteristics of PC telephone consultations in the Netherlands between 2004 and 2019. Design: A retrospective observational study reviewed data from the Dutch national register for PC consultations by telephone (PRADO). To assess trends in the number of consultations, three time periods were defined: 2004-2008, 2009-2013, and 2014-2019. All analyses were conducted using STATA. Results: A total of 83,554 PC telephone consultations were analyzed. There was a slight decrease in the number of consultations since 2014, from 5811 (2014) to 4914 (2019). The Dutch PCC telephone helpdesk was mainly consulted by general practitioners, with pharmacological issues (65%) and pain (44%) being the main concerns. The data included 73,833 patients, of whom 63% were 65 years or older (18-109) and 51% were male. The proportion of noncancer patients increased during the selected time periods, 2004-2008 (11%), 2009-2013 (16%), and 2014-2019 (22%). The proportion of consultations requested for hospitalized patients was higher in 2014-2019 (7.9%) than in 2009-2013 (4.5%). Conclusion: Dutch PC telephone consultations have changed over time. More PC telephone consultations were held for hospitalized patients and noncancer diseases over the past years. These trends are in line with the shift toward more integrated PC in which different services collaborate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rolf Snijders
- Research & Development, Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation (IKNL), Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Netherlands Association for Palliative Care, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Natasja Raijmakers
- Research & Development, Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation (IKNL), Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Netherlands Association for Palliative Care, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Azadeh Firouzian
- Research & Development, Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation (IKNL), Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Astrid Kodde
- Netherlands Association for Palliative Care, Utrecht, the Netherlands.,Stichting PaTz, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Hetty Kazimier
- Netherlands Association for Palliative Care, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Floor Bols
- Department of Palliative Care, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Tilburg, the Netherlands
| | | | - Linda Brom
- Research & Development, Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organisation (IKNL), Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Netherlands Association for Palliative Care, Utrecht, the Netherlands
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9
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Cox CE, Gu J, Ashana DC, Pratt EH, Haines K, Ma J, Olsen MK, Parish A, Casarett D, Al-Hegelan MS, Naglee C, Katz JN, O'Keefe YA, Harrison RW, Riley IL, Bermejo S, Dempsey K, Johnson KS, Docherty SL. Trajectories of Palliative Care Needs in the ICU and Long-Term Psychological Distress Symptoms. Crit Care Med 2023; 51:13-24. [PMID: 36326263 PMCID: PMC10191149 DOI: 10.1097/ccm.0000000000005701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES While palliative care needs are assumed to improve during ICU care, few empiric data exist on need trajectories or their impact on long-term outcomes. We aimed to describe trajectories of palliative care needs during ICU care and to determine if changes in needs over 1 week was associated with similar changes in psychological distress symptoms at 3 months. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING Six adult medical and surgical ICUs. PARTICIPANTS Patients receiving mechanical ventilation for greater than or equal to 2 days and their family members. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS The primary outcome was the 13-item Needs at the End-of-Life Screening Tool (NEST; total score range 0-130) completed by family members at baseline, 3, and 7 days. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Post-Traumatic Stress Scale (PTSS) were completed at baseline and 3 months. General linear models were used to estimate differences in distress symptoms by change in need (NEST improvement ≥ 10 points or not). One-hundred fifty-nine family members participated (median age, 54.0 yr [interquartile range (IQR), 44.0-63.0 yr], 125 [78.6%] female, 54 [34.0%] African American). At 7 days, 53 (33%) a serious level of overall need and 35 (22%) ranked greater than or equal to 1 individual need at the highest severity level. NEST scores improved greater than or equal to 10 points in only 47 (30%). Median NEST scores were 22 (IQR, 12-40) at baseline and 19 (IQR, 9-37) at 7 days (change, -2.0; IQR, -11.0 to 5.0; p = 0.12). There were no differences in PHQ-9, GAD-7, or PTSS change scores by change in NEST score (all p > 0.15). CONCLUSIONS Serious palliative care needs were common and persistent among families during ICU care. Improvement in needs was not associated with less psychological distress at 3 months. Serious needs may be commonly underrecognized in current practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher E Cox
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Jessie Gu
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Deepshikha Charan Ashana
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Elias H Pratt
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Krista Haines
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
- Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma and Critical Care and Acute Care Surgery, Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Jessica Ma
- Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham VA Healthcare System, Durham, NC
| | - Maren K Olsen
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University, Durham, NC
- Durham Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC
| | - Alice Parish
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - David Casarett
- Department of Medicine, Section of Palliative Care and Hospice Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Mashael S Al-Hegelan
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
| | - Colleen Naglee
- Department of Anesthesiology, Duke University, Durham, NC
- Department of Neurology, Division of Neurocritical Care, Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Jason N Katz
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
| | - Yasmin Ali O'Keefe
- Department of Neurology, Division of Neurocritical Care, Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Robert W Harrison
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
| | - Isaretta L Riley
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Santos Bermejo
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Katelyn Dempsey
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
- Program to Support People and Enhance Recovery (ProSPER), Duke University, Durham, NC
| | - Kimberly S Johnson
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham VA Healthcare System, Durham, NC
- Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC
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10
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Lang KB, Ellison H, Harvey S. The benefits of rotating through palliative care: A qualitative study. MEDICAL TEACHER 2022; 45:1-7. [PMID: 36302060 DOI: 10.1080/0142159x.2022.2134000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE This is a qualitative study of written reflection projects by medical learners who completed a clinical rotation in Palliative Care (PC) at an academic tertiary care center. METHODS Upon completing their rotation in PC, medical learners were asked to complete an open-ended reflection project that captured their overall impressions of this training and experience. Fourteen reflections were coded and analyzed. RESULTS Upon analyzing the reflections, 5 main themes emerged. The first theme is that this rotation helped the learners become more empathetic and compassionate towards patients and their families. Second, the learners were able to recognize the humanity in their patients, regardless of their medical condition. Third, each of the learners in this study had meaningful interactions with numerous patients and really felt that they played a supportive and important role in the death of patients with whom they were working. Fourth, this experience challenged the learners to think and act in ways that they have not been taught in medical school. Lastly, the learners experienced a sense of transformation and a new-found appreciation for all of the emotions involved with working with dying patients. CONCLUSIONS Rotating through PC and reflecting upon that experience can be very meaningful for medical learners who have not worked much with dying patients and their families.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Brandon Lang
- Department of Sociology, Social Work and Criminal Justice renamed as Department of Anthropology, Criminal Justice and Sociology, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, Bloomsburg, PA, USA, Bloomsburg, PA, USA
| | - Halle Ellison
- Department of Palliative Care, Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, PA, USA
| | - Sabine Harvey
- Department of Psychology, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, Bloomsburg, PA, USA
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11
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Lundereng ED, Nes AAG, Holmen H, Winger A, Thygesen H, Jøranson N, Borge CR, Dajani O, Mariussen KL, Steindal SA. Health Care Professionals’ Experiences and Perspectives on Using Telehealth for Home-based Palliative Care: A Scoping Review (Preprint). J Med Internet Res 2022; 25:e43429. [PMID: 36989024 PMCID: PMC10131609 DOI: 10.2196/43429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Telehealth seems feasible for use in home-based palliative care (HBPC). It may improve access to health care professionals (HCPs) at patients' homes, reduce hospital admissions, enhance patients' feelings of security and safety, and increase the time spent at home for patients in HBPC. HBPC requires the involvement of various HCPs such as nurses, physicians, allied health professionals, dietitians, psychologists, religious counselors, and social workers. Acceptance of the use of technology among HCPs is essential for the successful delivery of telehealth in practice. No scoping review has mapped the experiences and perspectives of HCPs regarding the use of telehealth in HBPC. OBJECTIVE The aim of this review was to systematically map published studies on HCPs' experiences and perspectives on the use of telehealth in HBPC. METHODS A scoping review was conducted using the methodology of Arksey and O'Malley. The review was reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews. A systematic search was performed in AMED, CINAHL, Embase, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Web of Science for studies published in peer-reviewed journals between January 1, 2000, and August 23, 2022. The reference lists of the included papers were hand searched to identify additional studies. The inclusion criteria were (1) studies using qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods; (2) studies including HCPs using telehealth with patients in HBPC; (3) studies on HCPs' experiences and perspectives on the use of telehealth in HBPC; (4) studies published between January 1, 2000, and August 23, 2022; and (5) studies published in English, Portuguese, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, or Spanish. Pairs of authors independently included studies and extracted data. The first 2 stages of thematic synthesis were used to thematically organize the data. RESULTS This scoping review included 29 papers from 28 studies. Four descriptive themes were identified: (1) easy to use but technological issues undermine confidence, (2) adds value but personal and organizational barriers challenge adoption, (3) potential to provide useful and meaningful patient-reported data, and (4) mutual trust as a prerequisite for interpersonal relationships. CONCLUSIONS Telehealth in HBPC seems to be easy to use and may improve the coordination of care, time efficiency, clinical assessments, and help build and enhance personal and professional relationships. However, the introduction of technology in HBPC is complex, as it may not align well with the overall aim of palliative care from HCPs' point of view. Further, changes in practice and requirements for HCPs may reduce motivation for the use of telehealth in HBPC. HCPs consider themselves to have central roles in implementing telehealth, and a lack of acceptance and motivation is a key barrier to telehealth adoption. Policy makers and telehealth developers should be aware of this potential barrier when developing or implementing new technology for use in HBPC. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID) RR2-10.2196/33305.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elias David Lundereng
- Lovisenberg Diaconal University College, Oslo, Norway
- European Palliative Care Research Centre (PRC), Department of Oncology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Heidi Holmen
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing and Health Promotion, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
- The Intervention Centre, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Anette Winger
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing and Health Promotion, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
| | - Hilde Thygesen
- Faculty of Health Studies, VID Specialized University, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Prosthetics and Orthotics, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway
| | - Nina Jøranson
- Faculty of Health Studies, VID Specialized University, Oslo, Norway
| | - Christine Råheim Borge
- Research Department, Lovisenberg Diaconal Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Olav Dajani
- European Palliative Care Research Centre (PRC), Department of Oncology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Simen A Steindal
- Lovisenberg Diaconal University College, Oslo, Norway
- Faculty of Health Studies, VID Specialized University, Oslo, Norway
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12
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Pandey S, Goldberg JI, Kapoor-Hintzen N, Stabler S, Nelson JE. Beyond 9 to 5: Expansion of an Inpatient Specialist Palliative Care Service to 24/7 Onsite Presence. J Hosp Palliat Nurs 2022; 24:E233-E239. [PMID: 35666762 PMCID: PMC10028388 DOI: 10.1097/njh.0000000000000892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
For seriously ill hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of cancer, there exists a need for specialist palliative care, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This article describes the expansion of a palliative care consult service in a metropolitan, dedicated cancer hospital to provide 24/7 specialist palliative care including onsite overnight presence by advanced practice registered nurses and to evaluate the impact of this change on nighttime utilization of the consult service. Inpatient management encounters and outpatient calls were compared before and after the expansion. The onsite availability of a palliative care specialist between midnight and 8 am increased from less than 10% of the time in 2019 to 100% of the time in 2021. The number of inpatient overnight calls and pages increased from a median of 4 to 16, and the number of follow-up visits evaluated increased from a median of 0 to 6. However, the number of overnight palliative care consults and outpatient calls evaluated did not change significantly. Expansion of a hospital-based palliative care service to include 24/7 onsite overnight presence increased patient, family, and night staff access to high-quality palliative care, prompt symptom management, and staff coaching on primary palliative care skills.
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LaTourette L, Williams K, Wong M, Thomas J, Pennarola A, Liantonio J. Evaluation of Bereavement Assessment Within Inpatient Palliative Care Consultation. Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2022:10499091221128256. [PMID: 36154714 DOI: 10.1177/10499091221128256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
It is crucial for palliative care teams to evaluate practices in assessing the risk of developing complicated grief among family members and caregivers of patients. A retrospective chart review of 99 patients seen by an inpatient palliative care team at an academic medical center was conducted to assess for documentation and prevalence of complicated grief risk factors. Factors included patients whose family are their primary caregiver, involvement of young children, mental health or substance use diagnoses in patients or their family members, a history of multiple losses, traumatic or sudden death. 64% of charts did not formally document bereavement assessment while 45% of families exhibited at least one risk factor for prolonged grief. This work suggests the need for increased education for PC providers on grief risk factors as well as the implementation of a formal screening assessment in order to best utilize limited psychosocial support resources to address needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren LaTourette
- Division of Geriatric Medicine and Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, 23217Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kaitlyn Williams
- Division of Geriatric Medicine and Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, 23217Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Michael Wong
- Sidney Kimmel Medical College, 12313Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jillian Thomas
- Division of Geriatric Medicine and Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, 23217Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Adam Pennarola
- Division of Geriatric Medicine and Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, 23217Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - John Liantonio
- Division of Geriatric Medicine and Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, 23217Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Abstract
Palliative care should be integrated into routine disease management for all patients with serious illness, regardless of settings or prognosis. The purposes of this integrative review were to identify the features of randomized controlled trials for adult patients with heart failure and to provide basic references for the development of future trials. Using Whittemore and Knafl's integrative literature review method, comprehensive searches of the PubMed, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, EMBASE, and Korean databases were conducted, integrating keywords about heart failure and palliative care interventions. Quality appraisal was assessed using Cochrane risk-of-bias tools. In total, there were 6 trials providing palliative care interventions integrating team-based approaches between palliative care specialists and nonpalliative clinicians, such as a cardiologist, cardiac nurse, and advanced practice nurse across inpatient and outpatient settings. The different types of interventions included home visits, symptom management via phone calls or referral to a specialist team, and the establishment of treatment planning. Patient-reported outcome measures included positive effects of palliative interventions on symptom burden and quality of life. Given that most of the selected studies were conducted in Western countries, palliative care should be culturally tailored to assist heart failure patients worldwide.
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Ramos-Vera C, Krikorian A, Vallejos Saldarriaga J. Factors related to positive attitudes toward palliative care: Direct and indirect effects of self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, and beliefs. Palliat Support Care 2022; 21:1-7. [PMID: 35894093 DOI: 10.1017/s1478951522000864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes toward palliative care (PC) constitute barriers to its access. Few studies have focused on the intrinsic relationship between these variables, and none has examined the relationship between them and self-care self-efficacy. OBJECTIVE To examine the direct and indirect effects of self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, and beliefs on attitudes toward PC. METHODS A cross-sectional predictive study was conducted. Self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about PC were analyzed using information from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5, cycle 2, 2018). Data from 1,162 participants were considered. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to represent the statistical mediation model with latent and observable variables. RESULTS The structural model presents positive coefficients indicating that self-care self-efficacy significantly predicts knowledge (β = 0.127, p < 0.001) and beliefs (β = 0.078, p = 0.023). Similarly, knowledge is associated with attitudes (β = 0.179, p < 0.001) and beliefs (β = 0.213, p < 0.001). The beliefs measure is also significantly related to attitudes (β = 0.474, p < 0.001). In addition, this structural multiple mediation model shows optimal goodness-of-fit indices: χ2/df = 3.49, CFI = 0.983, TLI = 0.976, RMSEA = 0.046 [90% CI: 0.037-0.056], SRMR = 0.038. CONCLUSION Self-care self-efficacy is significantly associated with knowledge and beliefs about PC, which in turn are related to each other. Altogether, these variables predict positive attitudes toward PC. Understanding the relationship between these variables is relevant for targeting-specific populations and designing timely strategies to improve access to PC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristian Ramos-Vera
- Research Area, School of Health Sciences, Universidad César Vallejo, Lima, Peru
- Sociedad Peruana de Psicometría, Lima, Peru
| | - Alicia Krikorian
- Pain and Palliative Care Group, School of Health Sciences, Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín, Colombia
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16
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Alquati S, Peruselli C, Turrà C, Tanzi S. Lesson Learned From Hospital Palliative Care Service in a Cancer Research Center in Italy: Results of 5 Years of Experience. Front Oncol 2022; 12:936795. [PMID: 35832554 PMCID: PMC9271826 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.936795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BackgroundInternational studies have documented that over a third of all hospital beds are occupied by patients with palliative care needs in their last year of life. Experiences of Palliative Care Services that take place prevalently or exclusively in hospital settings are very few in Italy.ObjectiveDescribe clinical, educational and research activities performed by a hospital PCS and discussing opportunities and critical issues encountered in an Italian Cancer Center.MethodRetrospective data regarding adults with advanced stage diseases referred from January 2015 to December 2019.ResultsClinical activity - The PCS performed 2422 initial consultations with an average of 484 initial consultations per year. A majority of patients had advanced cancer, from 85% to 72%, with an average of 2583 total consultations per year and an average of 4.63 consultations per patient. The penetrance has increased over time from 6.3% to 15.75%. Educational and research activity - Since 2015, PCS has provided training to health professionals (HPs) of different departments of our hospital. Most of the educational projects for HPs were part of research projects, for example the communication training program, management of pain and end-of-life symptoms and the training program for PC-based skills.ConclusionOur data suggests that a PCS able to provide palliative care to inpatients and outpatient and continuous training support to other hospital specialists can relatively quickly improve the level of its penetrance in hospital activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Alquati
- Palliative Care Unit, Azienda USL – IRCCS di Reggio Emilia, Reggio Emilia, Italy
- *Correspondence: Sara Alquati, ; orcid.org/0000-0001-8696-9602
| | | | - Caterina Turrà
- Department of Hospital Pharmacy, Azienda USL-IRCCS di Reggio Emilia, Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | - Silvia Tanzi
- Palliative Care Unit, Azienda USL – IRCCS di Reggio Emilia, Reggio Emilia, Italy
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Ninteau K, Bishop CE. Nursing Home Palliative Care during the Pandemic: Directions for the Future. Innov Aging 2022; 6:igac030. [PMID: 35832204 PMCID: PMC9273407 DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igac030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and Objectives Palliative care addresses physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual suffering that accompanies serious illness. Emphasis on symptom management and goals of care is especially valuable for seriously ill nursing home residents. We investigated barriers to nursing home palliative care provision highlighted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the solutions nursing home staff used to provide care in the face of those barriers. Research Design and Methods For this descriptive qualitative study, seven Massachusetts nursing home directors of nursing were interviewed remotely about palliative care provision before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results Before the pandemic, palliative care was delivered primarily by nursing home staff depending on formal and informal consultations from palliative care specialists affiliated with hospice providers. When COVID-19 lockdowns precluded these consultations, nursing staff did their best to provide palliative care, but were often overwhelmed by shortfalls in resources, resident decline brought on by isolation and COVID-19 itself, and a sense that their expertise was lacking. Advance care planning conversations focused on hospitalization decisions and options for care given resource constraints. Nevertheless, nursing staff discovered previously untapped capacity to provide palliative care on-site as part of standard care, building trust of residents and families. Discussion and Implications Nursing staff rose to the palliative care challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic, albeit with great effort. Consistent with prepandemic analysis, we conclude that nursing home payment and quality standards should support development of in-house staff capacity to deliver palliative care while expanding access to the formal consultations and family involvement that were restricted by the pandemic. Future research should be directed to evaluating initiatives that pursue these aims.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kacy Ninteau
- Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Christine E Bishop
- Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, USA
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18
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Gray NA, Kamal AH, Hanson LC, Bull J, Kutner JS, Ritchie CS, Johnson KS. Clinician Perspectives Guiding Approach to Comprehensiveness of Palliative Care Assessment. J Palliat Med 2022; 25:307-311. [PMID: 34788574 PMCID: PMC9022122 DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2021.0391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: National Consensus Project for quality palliative care guidelines emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive assessment of all care domains, including physical, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of care, for seriously ill patients. However, less is known about how real-world practice compares with this guideline. Objective: To describe clinicians' assessment practices and factors influencing their approach. Design: This is a two-part web-based survey of palliative care clinicians from five academic groups in the United States. Results: Nineteen out of 25 invited clinicians (physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants) completed the survey. A majority (62%) reported that, although some elements of assessment were mandatory, their usual practice was to tailor the focus of the consultation. Time limitations and workload received the highest mean scores as reasons for tailored assessment (6.1 on a 0-9 importance scale), followed by beliefs that comprehensive assessment is unnecessary (4.8) and absence of the full interdisciplinary team (4.4). All participants cited symptom acuity, and 91% cited reason for consult as factors influencing a tailored approach. Among domains "always" assessed, physical symptoms were reported most commonly (81%) and spiritual and cultural factors least commonly (24% and 19%, respectively). Although a majority of clinicians reported usually tailoring their consultations, mean importance scores for almost all assessment elements were high (range 3.9-8.8, mean 7.1); however, there was some variation based on reason for consult. Spiritual elements received lower importance scores relative to other elements (5.0 vs. 7.4 mean score for all others). Conclusion: Although clinicians placed high importance on most elements included in comprehensive palliative care, in practice they often tailored their consultations, and the perceived relative importance of domains shifted depending upon the type of consultation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan A. Gray
- Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Address correspondence to: Nathan A. Gray, MD, Duke Palliative Care, DUMC Box 3688, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Arif H. Kamal
- Duke Cancer Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Laura C. Hanson
- Division of Geriatric Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Janet Bull
- Four Seasons Compassion for Life, Hendersonville, North Carolina, USA
| | - Jean S. Kutner
- Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA
| | - Christine S. Ritchie
- Division of Palliative Care and Geriatric Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kimberly S. Johnson
- Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Duke University Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Geriatrics Research, Education and Clinical Center, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Address correspondence to: Kimberly S. Johnson, MD, MHS, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3003, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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19
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Hua M, Fonseca LD, Morrison RS, Wunsch H, Fullilove R, White DB. What Affects Adoption of Specialty Palliative Care in Intensive Care Units: A Qualitative Study. J Pain Symptom Manage 2021; 62:1273-1282. [PMID: 34182102 PMCID: PMC8648909 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2021.06.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2021] [Revised: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Although many patients with critical illness may benefit from involvement of palliative care specialists, adoption of these services in the intensive care unit (ICU) is variable. OBJECTIVE To characterize reasons for variable buy-in for specialty palliative care in the ICU, and identify factors associated with routine involvement of specialists in appropriate cases. METHODS Qualitative study using in-depth, semi-structured interviews with ICU attendings, nurses, and palliative care clinicians, purposively sampled from eight ICUs (medical, surgical, cardiothoracic, neurological) with variable use of palliative care services within two urban, academic medical centers. Interviews were transcribed and coded using an iterative and inductive approach with constant comparison. RESULTS We identified three types of specialty palliative care adoption in ICUs, representing different phases of buy-in. The "nascent" phase was characterized by the need for education about palliative care services and clarification of which patients may be appropriate for involvement. During the key "transitional" phase, use of specialists depended on development of "comfort and trust", which centered on four aspects of the ICU-palliative care clinician relationship: 1) increasing familiarity between clinicians; 2) navigating shared responsibility with primary clinicians; 3) having a collaborative approach to care; and 4) having successful experiences. In the "mature" phase, ICU and palliative care clinicians worked to strengthen their existing collaboration, but further adoption was limited by the availability and resources of the palliative care team. CONCLUSION This conceptual framework identifying distinct phases of adoption may assist institutions aiming to foster sustained adoption of specialty palliative care in an ICU setting.
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Affiliation(s)
- May Hua
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, USA.
| | - Laura D Fonseca
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, USA
| | - R Sean Morrison
- Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA; James J Peters VA, Bronx, New York, USA
| | - Hannah Wunsch
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, USA; Department of Critical Care Medicine, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine and Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Robert Fullilove
- Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, USA
| | - Douglas B White
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
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Friedrichsen M, Hajradinovic Y, Jakobsson M, Brachfeld K, Milberg A. Cultures that collide: an ethnographic study of the introduction of a palliative care consultation team on acute wards. BMC Palliat Care 2021; 20:180. [PMID: 34802436 PMCID: PMC8606051 DOI: 10.1186/s12904-021-00877-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Acute care and palliative care (PC) are described as different incompatible organisational care cultures. Few studies have observed the actual meeting between these two cultures. In this paper we report part of ethnographic results from an intervention study where a palliative care consultation team (PCCT) used an integrative bedside education approach, trying to embed PC principles and interventions into daily practice in acute wards. Purpose To study the meeting and interaction of two different care cultures, palliative care and curative acute wards, when a PCCT introduces consulting services to acute wards regarding end-of-life palliative care, focusing on the differences between the cultures. Methods An ethnographic study design was used, including observations, interviews and diary entries. A PCCT visited acute care wards during 1 year. The analysis was inspired by Spradleys ethnography. Results Three themes were found: 1) Anticipations meets reality; 2) Valuation of time and prioritising; and 3) The content and creation of palliative care. Conclusion There are many differences in values, and the way PC are provided in the acute care wards compared to what a PCCT expects. The didactic challenges are many and the PC require effort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Friedrichsen
- Palliative Education and Research Centre in Region Östergötland, Vrinnevi Hospital, 601 82, Norrköping, Sweden.
| | | | - Maria Jakobsson
- Department of Palliative Medicine, Vrinnevi Hospital, Norrköping, Sweden
| | - Kerstin Brachfeld
- Palliative Education and Research Centre in Region Östergötland, Vrinnevi Hospital, 601 82, Norrköping, Sweden
| | - Anna Milberg
- Palliative Education and Research Centre in Region Östergötland, Vrinnevi Hospital, 601 82, Norrköping, Sweden.,Department of Health, Medicine and Caring Sciences, Division of Prevention, Rehabilitation and Community Medicine, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
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21
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Jackson I, Jackson N, Etuk A. Trends, Sociodemographic and Hospital-Level Factors Associated With Palliative Care Utilization Among Multiple Myeloma Patients Using the National Inpatient Sample (2016-2018). Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2021; 39:888-894. [PMID: 34663083 DOI: 10.1177/10499091211051667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Several factors are reported to be associated with palliative care utilization among patients with various cancers, but literature is lacking on multiple myeloma (MM) specific factors. MM patients have a high symptom burden and early involvement of palliative could increase their quality of life. We examined factors associated with palliative care utilization among MM patients and explored prevalence trends in palliative care utilization among patients with MM. METHODS Cross-sectional analyses were conducted using the National Inpatient Sample data collected between 2016 and 2018. Descriptive analyses were used to explore prevalence trends in palliative care utilization over time. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine sociodemographic and hospital-level factors associated with palliative care utilization in MM patients. RESULTS Overall prevalence of palliative care utilization in our population was 7.7% with a trend of increasing use of palliative care from 7.3% in 2016 to 8.2% in 2018. MM patients aged 70 years and above had 1.30 times higher odds (95% CI: 1.20-1.42) of receiving palliative care relative to those younger than 70 years. Compared to non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks (Adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 0.86; 95% CI: 0.79-0.94) were less likely to utilize palliative care. Patients on Medicaid (AOR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.08-1.49), private insurance (AOR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.16-1.39) and other insurance types (AOR: 2.10; 95% CI: 1.79-2.47) had significantly higher odds of receiving palliative care when compared to those on Medicare. Other factors identified were hospital region, location, patient disposition, admission type, length of stay, and number of comorbidities. CONCLUSION Our findings highlight the urgent need for education of hospital physicians on the need for early palliative care involvement in the care of hospitalized MM patients. Messaging interventions such as the delivery of pop-up messages in electronic medical records to serve as reminders for physicians can be explored as a potential way to increase palliative care consultations for patients who need them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inimfon Jackson
- Department of Medicine, Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Nsikak Jackson
- Department of Management, Policy and Community Health, University of Texas School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, TX, USA
| | - Aniekeme Etuk
- Department of Management, Policy and Community Health, University of Texas School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, TX, USA
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22
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Inpatient Palliative Care Is Less Utilized in Rare, Fatal Extrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma: A Ten-Year National Perspective. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph181910004. [PMID: 34639305 PMCID: PMC8508271 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph181910004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/21/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Background—Extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECC) is a rare, morbid, fatal cancer with distressing symptoms. Maintaining a high quality of life while reducing hospital charges and length of stay (LOS) for the end-of-life period remains a major challenge for the healthcare system. Palliative care utilization has been shown to address these challenges; moreover, its use has increased in recent years among cancer patients. However, the utilization of palliative care in rare cancers, such as ECC, has not yet been explored. Objectives—To investigate palliative care utilization among ECC patients admitted to US hospitals between 2007 and 2016 and its association with patient demographics, clinical characteristics, hospital charges, and LOS. Methods—De-identified patient data of each hospitalization were retrieved from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database. Codes V66.7 (ICD-9-CM) or Z51.5 (ICD-10-CM) were used to find palliative care utilization. Multivariate adjusted logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess factors associated with palliative care use, LOS, hospital charges, and in-hospital death. Results—Of 4426 hospitalizations, only 6.7% received palliative care services. Palliative care utilization did not significantly increase over time (p = 0.06); it reduced hospital charges by USD 25,937 (p < 0.0001) and LOS by 1.3 days (p = 0.0004) per hospitalization. Palliative care was positively associated with female gender, severe disease, and age group ≥80 (p ≤ 0.05). The average LOS was 8.5 days for each admission. Conclusions—Hospital admissions with palliative care utilization had lower hospital charges and LOS in ECC. However, ECC patients received less palliative care compared with more common cancers sharing similar symptoms (e.g., pancreatic cancer). ECC patients also had longer LOS compared with the national average. Further research is warranted to develop interventions to increase palliative care utilization among ECC hospital patients.
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Evaluation of automated specialty palliative care in the intensive care unit: A retrospective cohort study. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0255989. [PMID: 34379687 PMCID: PMC8357176 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Automated specialty palliative care consultation (SPC) has been proposed as an intervention to improve patient-centered care in the intensive care unit (ICU). Existing automated SPC trigger criteria are designed to identify patients at highest risk of in-hospital death. We sought to evaluate common mortality-based SPC triggers and determine whether these triggers reflect actual use of SPC consultation. We additionally aimed to characterize the population of patients who receive SPC without meeting mortality-based triggers. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all adult ICU admissions from 2012–2017 at an academic medical center with five subspecialty ICUs to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the five most common SPC triggers for predicting receipt of SPC. Among ICU admissions receiving SPC, we assessed differences in patients who met any SPC trigger compared to those who met none. Results Of 48,744 eligible admissions, 1,965 (4.03%) received SPC; 979 (49.82%) of consultations met at least 1 trigger. The sensitivity and specificity for any trigger predicting SPC was 49.82% and 79.61%, respectively. Patients who met no triggers but received SPC were younger (62.71 years vs 66.58 years, mean difference (MD) 3.87 years (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.44–5.30) p<0.001), had longer ICU length of stay (11.43 days vs 8.42 days, MD -3.01 days (95% CI -4.30 –-1.72) p<0.001), and had a lower rate of in-hospital death (48.68% vs 58.12%, p<0.001). Conclusion Mortality-based triggers for specialty palliative care poorly reflect actual use of SPC in the ICU. Reliance on such triggers may unintentionally overlook an important population of patients with clinician-identified palliative care needs.
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Meghani SH, Levoy K, Magan KC, Starr LT, Yocavitch L, Barg FK. "I'm Dealing With That": Illness Concerns of African American and White Cancer Patients While Undergoing Active Cancer Treatments. Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2021; 38:830-841. [PMID: 33107324 PMCID: PMC8424597 DOI: 10.1177/1049909120969121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND National oncology guidelines recommend early integration of palliative care for patients with cancer. However, drivers for this integration remain understudied. Understanding illness concerns at the time of cancer treatment may help facilitate integration earlier in the cancer illness trajectory. OBJECTIVE To describe cancer patients' concerns while undergoing cancer treatment, and determine if concerns differ among African Americans and Whites. METHODS A 1-time, semi-structured qualitative interview was conducted with a purposive subsample of cancer patients participating in a larger study of illness concerns. Eligible patients were undergoing cancer treatments and had self-reported moderate-to-severe pain in the last week. Analysis encompassed a qualitative descriptive approach with inductive thematic analysis. RESULTS Participants (16 African American, 16 White) had a median age of 53 and were predominantly females (72%) with stage III/IV cancer (53%). Illness concerns were largely consistent across participants and converged on 3 themes: symptom experience (pain, options to manage pain), cancer care delivery (communication, care coordination and care transitions), and practical concerns (access to community and health system resources, financial toxicity). CONCLUSIONS The findings extend the scope of factors that could be utilized to integrate palliative care earlier in the cancer illness trajectory, moving beyond the symptoms- and prognosis-based triggers that typify current referrals to also consider diverse logistical concerns. Using this larger set of concerns aids anticipatory risk mitigation and planning (e.g. care transitions, financial toxicity), helps patients receive a larger complement of support services, and builds cancer patients' capacity toward a more patient-centered treatment and care experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salimah H. Meghani
- Department of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Kristin Levoy
- Department of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Lauren T. Starr
- Department of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Frances K. Barg
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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25
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Comparison of Two Methods for Implementing Comfort Care Order Sets in the Inpatient Setting: a Cluster Randomized Trial. J Gen Intern Med 2021; 36:1928-1936. [PMID: 33547573 PMCID: PMC8298677 DOI: 10.1007/s11606-020-06482-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is an ongoing need for interventions to improve quality of end-of-life care for patients in inpatient settings. OBJECTIVE To compare two methods for implementing a Comfort Care Education Intervention for Palliative Care Consultation Teams (PCCT) in Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMCs). DESIGN Cluster randomized implementation trial conducted March 2015-April 2019. PCCTs were assigned to a traditional implementation approach using a teleconference or to an in-person, train-the-champion workshop to prepare PCCTs to be clinical champions at their home sites. PARTICIPANTS One hundred thirty-two providers from PCCTs at 47 VAMCs. INTERVENTIONS Both training modalities involved review of educational materials, instruction on using an electronic Comfort Care Order Set, and coaching to deliver the intervention to other providers. MAIN MEASUREMENTS Several processes of care were identified a priori as quality endpoints for end-of-life care (last 7 days) and abstracted from medical records of veterans who died within 9 months before or after implementation (n = 6,491). The primary endpoint was the presence of an active order for opioid medication at time of death. Secondary endpoints were orders/administration of antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, and scopolamine, do-not-resuscitate orders, advance directives, locations of death, palliative care consultations, nasogastric tubes, intravenous lines, physical restraints, pastoral care visits, and family presence at/near time of death. Generalized estimating equations were conducted adjusting for potential covariates. KEY RESULTS Eighty-eight providers from 23 VAMCs received teleconference training; 44 providers from 23 VAMCs received in-person workshop training. Analyses found no significant differences between intervention groups in any process-of-care endpoints (primary endpoint AOR (CI) = 1.18 (0.74, 1.89). Furthermore, pre-post changes were not significant for any endpoints (primary endpoint AOR (CI) = 1.16 (0.92, 1.46). Analyses may have been limited by high baseline values on key endpoints with little room for improvement. CONCLUSION Findings suggest the clinical effectiveness of palliative care educational intervention was not dependent on which of the two implementation methods was used. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02383173.
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26
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Quelal K, Olagoke O, Shahi A, Torres A, Ezegwu O, Golzar Y. Trends and Predictors of Palliative Care Consultation Among Patients Admitted for LVAD: A Retrospective Analysis From the Nationwide Inpatient Sample Database From 2006-2014. Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2021; 39:353-360. [PMID: 34080439 DOI: 10.1177/10499091211021837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) are an essential part of advanced heart failure (HF) management, either as a bridge to transplantation or destination therapy. Patients with advanced HF have a poor prognosis and may benefit from palliative care consultation (PCC). However, there is scarce data regarding the trends and predictors of PCC among patients undergoing LVAD implantation. AIM This study aims to assess the incidence, trends, and predictors of PCC in LVAD recipients using the United States Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database from 2006 until 2014. METHODS We conducted a weighted analysis on LVAD recipients during their index hospitalization. We compared those who had PCC with those who did not. We examined the trend in palliative care utilization and calculated adjusted odds ratios (aOR) to identify demographic, social, and hospital characteristics associated with PCC using multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS We identified 20,675 admissions who had LVAD implantation, and of them 4% had PCC. PCC yearly rate increased from 0.6% to 7.2% (P < 0.001). DNR status (aOR 28.30), female sex (aOR 1.41), metastatic cancer (aOR: 3.53), Midwest location (aOR 1.33), and small-sized hospitals (aOR 2.52) were positive predictors for PCC along with in-hospital complications. Differently, Black (aOR 0.43) and Hispanic patients (aOR 0.25) were less likely to receive PCC. CONCLUSION There was an increasing trend for in-hospital PCC referral in LVAD admissions while the overall rate remained low. These findings suggest that integrative models to involve PCC early in advanced HF patients are needed to increase its generalized utilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karol Quelal
- Department of Internal Medicine, Cook County Health, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Olankami Olagoke
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Anoj Shahi
- Department of Internal Medicine, Cook County Health, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Andrea Torres
- Department of Internal Medicine, Cook County Health, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Olisa Ezegwu
- Department of Internal Medicine, Cook County Health, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Yasmeen Golzar
- Division of Cardiology, Cook County Health, Chicago, IL, USA
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27
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Creating Effective Models for Delivering Palliative Care in Advanced Liver Disease. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2021; 20:43-52. [PMID: 33868897 PMCID: PMC8035614 DOI: 10.1007/s11901-021-00562-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Purpose of Review The current healthcare system is not fully equipped to provide comprehensive support for patients with advanced liver disease (ALD) and their caregivers resulting in concomitant suffering and reduced quality of life (QoL). Integration of palliative care (PC) within routine care has demonstrated benefits in improving symptoms and QoL and reducing healthcare utilization for other serious illnesses but has been underutilized or delayed for ALD care. The purpose of this article is to outline the domains and benefits of PC and discuss the misconceptions and barriers for PC integration, and healthcare delivery models supporting PC integration within ALD care. Recent Findings PC has eight key domains related to physical and mental health, goals for future care, and care of the caregivers. PC offers benefits to improve health outcomes and patient satisfaction and reduce healthcare utilization. To date there have been successful models of PC that are primarily hospital- or community-based; successful models have been PC specialist- or primary/generalist-led. Summary Concurrent PC within oncology has formed the basis for most evidence-based guidelines. PC integration within ALD care is still in its infancy. While amassing evidence in ALD, hepatology organizations can promote consensus-based integrated PC models that can guide research and practice efforts to increase supportive care for these patients in need and their family caregivers.
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28
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Hamill Howard E, Schwartz R, Feldstein B, Grudzen M, Klein L, Piderman KM, Wang D. Harnessing the Chaplain's Capacity to Identify Unmet Palliative Needs of Vulnerable Older Adults in the Emergency Department. J Palliat Care 2021; 37:480-485. [PMID: 33818162 DOI: 10.1177/08258597211003359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To explore chaplains' ability to identify unmet palliative care (PC) needs in older emergency department (ED) patients. METHODS A palliative chaplain-fellow conducted a retrospective chart review evaluating 580 ED patients, age ≥80 using the Palliative Care and Rapid Emergency Screening (P-CaRES) tool. An emergency medicine physician and chaplain-fellow screened 10% of these charts to provide a clinical assessment. One year post-study, charts were re-examined to identify which patients received PC consultation (PCC) or died, providing an objective metric for comparing predicted needs with services received. RESULTS Within one year of ED presentation, 31% of the patient sub-sample received PCC; 17% died. Forty percent of deceased patients did not receive PCC. Of this 40%, chaplain screening for P-CaRES eligibility correctly identified 75% of the deceased as needing PCC. CONCLUSION Establishing chaplain-led PC screenings as standard practice in the ED setting may improve end-of-life care for older patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rachel Schwartz
- WellMD Center, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Bruce Feldstein
- Spiritual Care Service, Stanford Health Care, Stanford, CA, USA.,Department of Primary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.,Jewish Chaplaincy Services serving Stanford Medicine, a program of Jewish Family & Children's Services of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties, CA, USA
| | - Marita Grudzen
- Stanford Geriatric Education Center, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Lori Klein
- Spiritual Care Service, Stanford Health Care, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Katherine M Piderman
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.,Transforming Chaplaincy, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - David Wang
- Palliative Medicine, Scripps Health, San Diego, CA, USA
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29
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Feder SL, Tate J, Ersek M, Krishnan S, Chaudhry SI, Bastian LA, Rolnick J, Kutney-Lee A, Akgün KM. The Association Between Hospital End-of-Life Care Quality and the Care Received Among Patients With Heart Failure. J Pain Symptom Manage 2021; 61:713-722.e1. [PMID: 32931904 PMCID: PMC7952458 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Improving end-of-life care (EOLC) quality among heart failure patients is imperative. Data are limited as to the hospital processes of care that facilitate this goal. OBJECTIVES To determine associations between hospital-level EOLC quality ratings and the EOLC delivered to heart failure patients. METHODS Retrospective analysis of the Veterans Health Administration (VA) and the Bereaved Family Survey data of heart failure patients from 2013 to 2015 who died in 107 VA hospitals. We calculated hospital-level observed-to-expected casemix-adjusted ratios of family reported excellent EOLC, dividing hospitals into quintiles. Using logistic regression, we examined associations between quintiles and palliative care consultation, receipt of chaplain and bereavement services, inpatient hospice, and intensive care unit death. RESULTS Of 6256 patients, mean age was 77.4 (SD = 11.1), 98.3% were male, 75.7% were white, and 18.2% were black. Median hospital scores of "excellent" EOLC ranged from 41.3% (interquartile range 37.0%-44.8%) in the lowest quintile to 76.4% (interquartile range 72.9%-80.3%) in the highest quintile. Patients who died in hospitals in the highest quintile, relative to the lowest, were slightly although not significantly more likely to receive a palliative care consultation (adjusted proportions 57.6% vs. 51.2%; P = 0.32) but were more likely to receive chaplaincy (92.6% vs. 81.2%), bereavement (86.0% vs. 72.2%), and hospice (59.7% vs. 35.9%) and were less likely to die in the intensive care unit (15.9% vs. 31.0%; P < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION Patients with heart failure who die in VA hospitals with higher overall EOLC quality receive more supportive EOLC. Research is needed that integrates care processes and develops scalable best practices in EOLC across health care systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shelli L Feder
- Yale University School of Nursing, West Haven, Connecticut, USA; VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, Connecticut, USA.
| | - Janet Tate
- VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Mary Ersek
- Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | | | | | - Lori A Bastian
- VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, Connecticut, USA; Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Joshua Rolnick
- Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ann Kutney-Lee
- Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Kathleen M Akgün
- VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, Connecticut, USA; Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
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30
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Integrating the ELNEC undergraduate curriculum into Nursing Education: Lessons learned. J Prof Nurs 2020; 37:286-290. [PMID: 33867082 DOI: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2020.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Nurses are called to lead and transform palliative care, compelling nurse educators to provide the requisite education to do so. All nursing students need to learn primary palliative care to be prepared to care for the growing number of patients with serious illness and their families. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Competencies And Recommendations for Educating nursing Students (CARES) document outlines 17 palliative care competencies to be attained by graduation from their pre-licensure programs. Integrating standardized primary palliative care education into curriculum remains a challenge for nurse educators. The End of Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) Undergraduate online modules represent one educational strategy that supports faculty and students in meeting AACN competencies as well as other national guidelines for palliative care education. Despite its ease of use, only about 25% of all undergraduate programs are incorporating these into their programs. Faculty continue to report barriers to implementing palliative care education, including saturated curricula, limited content expertise, and cost. This paper describes lessons learned from palliative care champion nursing schools to help overcome these barriers.
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31
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Antibiotic use during end-of-life care: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2020; 42:523-529. [PMID: 33172507 DOI: 10.1017/ice.2020.1241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND We performed a systematic literature review and meta-analysis measuring the burden of antibiotic use during end-of-life (EOL) care. METHODS We searched PubMed, CINAHL (EBSCO platform), and Embase (Elsevier platform), through July 2019 for studies with the following inclusion criteria in the initial analysis: antibiotic use in the EOL care patients (advanced dementia, cancer, organ failure, frailty or multi-morbidity). If the number of patients in palliative care consultation (PCC) was available, antibiotic use data were pooled to compare the proportion of patients who received antibiotics under PCC compared to those not receiving PCC. Random-effect models were used to obtain pooled mean differences, and heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 value. RESULTS Overall, 72 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the final review: 22 EOL studies included only patients with cancer; 17 studies included only patients with advanced dementia; and 33 studies included "mixed populations" of EOL patients. Although few studies reported antibiotic using standard metrics (eg, days of therapy), 48 of 72 studies (66.7%) reported antibiotic use in >50% of all patients. When the 3 studies that evaluated antibiotic use in PCC were pooled together, patients under PCC was more likely to receive antibiotics compared to patients not under PCC (pooled odds ratio, 1.73; 95% CI, 1.02-2.93). CONCLUSIONS Future studies are needed to evaluate the benefits and harms of using antibiotics for patients during EOL care in diverse patient populations.
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32
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Lee JD, Jennerich AL, Engelberg RA, Downey L, Curtis JR, Khandelwal N. Type of Intensive Care Unit Matters: Variations in Palliative Care for Critically Ill Patients with Chronic, Life-Limiting Illness. J Palliat Med 2020; 24:857-864. [PMID: 33156728 DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2020.0412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: It is not clear whether use of specialty palliative care consults and "comfort measures only" (CMO) order sets differ by type of intensive care unit (ICU). A better understanding of palliative care provided to these patients may help address heterogeneity of care across ICU types. Objectives: Examine utilization of specialty palliative care consultation and CMO order sets across several different ICU types in a multihospital academic health care system. Design: Retrospective cohort study using Washington State death certificates and data from the electronic health record. Setting/Subjects: Adults with a chronic medical illness who died in an ICU at one of two hospitals from July 2013 through December 2018. Five ICU types were identified by patient population and attending physician specialty. Measurements: Documentation of a specialty palliative care consult during a patient's terminal ICU stay and a CMO order set at time of death. Results: For 2706 eligible decedents, ICU type was significantly associated with odds of palliative care consultation (p < 0.001) as well as presence of CMO order set at time of death (p < 0.001). Compared with medical ICUs, odds of palliative care consultation were highest in the cardiothoracic ICU and trauma ICU. Odds of CMO order set in place at time of death were highest in the neurology/neurosurgical ICU. Conclusion: Utilization of specialty palliative care consultations and CMO order sets varies across types of ICUs. Examining this variability within institutions may provide an opportunity to improve end-of-life care for patients with chronic, life-limiting illnesses who die in the ICU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua D Lee
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ann L Jennerich
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ruth A Engelberg
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Lois Downey
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - J Randall Curtis
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Nita Khandelwal
- Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
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Courtright KR, Srinivasan TL, Madden VL, Karlawish J, Szymanski S, Hill SH, Halpern SD, Ersek M. "I Don't Have Time to Sit and Talk with Them": Hospitalists' Perspectives on Palliative Care Consultation for Patients with Dementia. J Am Geriatr Soc 2020; 68:2365-2372. [PMID: 32748393 PMCID: PMC8485634 DOI: 10.1111/jgs.16712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2019] [Revised: 06/20/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES Specialty palliative care for hospitalized patients with dementia is widely recommended and may improve outcomes, yet rates of consultation remain low. We sought to describe hospitalists' decision-making regarding palliative care consultation for patients with dementia. DESIGN Descriptive qualitative study. SETTING Seven hospitals within a national nonprofit health system. PARTICIPANTS Hospitalist physicians. MEASUREMENTS Individual semistructured interviews. We used thematic analysis to explore factors that influence hospitalists' decision to consult palliative care for patients with dementia. RESULTS A total of 171 hospitalists were eligible to participate, and 28 (16%) were interviewed; 17 (61%) were male, 16 (57%) were white, and 18 (64%) were in practice less than 10 years. Overall, hospitalists' decisions to consult palliative care for patients with dementia were influenced by multiple factors across four themes: patient, family caregiver, hospitalist, and organization. Consultation was typically only considered for patients with advanced disease, particularly those receiving aggressive care or with family communication needs (navigating conflicts around goals of care and improving disease and prognostic understanding). Hospitalists' limited time and, for some, a lack of confidence in palliative care skills were strong drivers of consultation. Palliative care needs notwithstanding, most hospitalists would not request consultation if they perceived families would be resistant to it or had limited availability or involvement in caregiving. Additional barriers to referral at the organization level included a hospital culture that conflated palliative and end-of-life care and busy palliative care teams at some hospitals. CONCLUSION Hospitalists described a complex consultation decision process for involving palliative care specialists in the care of patients with dementia. Systematic identification of hospitalized patients with dementia most likely to benefit from palliative care consultation and strategies to overcome modifiable family and organization barriers are needed. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:2365-2372, 2020.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine R. Courtright
- Palliative and Advanced Illness Research (PAIR) Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine Division, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Penn Roybal Center on Palliative Care in Dementia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Trishya L. Srinivasan
- Palliative and Advanced Illness Research (PAIR) Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Vanessa L. Madden
- Palliative and Advanced Illness Research (PAIR) Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Jason Karlawish
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Penn Roybal Center on Palliative Care in Dementia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Institute on Aging, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Penn Memory Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Stephanie Szymanski
- Palliative and Advanced Illness Research (PAIR) Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Scott D. Halpern
- Palliative and Advanced Illness Research (PAIR) Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine Division, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Penn Roybal Center on Palliative Care in Dementia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Mary Ersek
- Penn Roybal Center on Palliative Care in Dementia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Institute on Aging, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Department of Veteran Affairs, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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Maley JH, Worsham CM, Landon BE, Stevens JP. Association between Palliative Care and End-of-Life Resource Use for Older Adults Hospitalized with Septic Shock. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2020; 17:974-979. [PMID: 32275846 PMCID: PMC7531025 DOI: 10.1513/annalsats.202001-038oc] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Accepted: 04/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Rationale: The care of critically ill patients often involves complex discussions surrounding prognosis, goals, and end-of-life decision-making. Yet, physician and hospital practice patterns, rather than patient goals, remain a major determinant of the intensity of end-of-life care. For critically ill patients, palliative care may help promote treatments that are concordant with patients' goals, while minimizing the use of invasive and costly intensive care unit resources that may not be consistent with those goals.Objectives: To determine whether inpatient palliative care, delivered by specialist consultants or a primary medical team, is associated with reduced hospital length of stay and costs for older adults with septic shock at the end of life.Methods: This was a retrospective cohort using the National Inpatient Sample from 2013 to 2014, examining patients aged ≥65 years with septic shock who died during their hospitalization. The exposure of interest was inpatient palliative care encounter, including either generalist- or specialist-delivered palliative care. Outcomes were hospital length of stay, total cost for the hospitalization, and daily hospital cost. Patient and hospital-level confounders were used to derive inverse probability of treatment weights and estimate the association between palliative care and outcomes in a generalized linear model.Results: We studied 45,868 patients who died with a diagnosis of septic shock; 15,370 of these patients had a palliative care encounter. After inverse probability of treatment weighting, there were no appreciable differences between the population characteristics. Palliative care was associated with a shorter adjusted mean hospital length of stay (12.0 vs. 13.1 d; difference, -1.1 d; 95% confidence interval [CI], -1.4 to -0.9; P < 0.001), lower total hospital costs (69,700 vs. 76,800 U.S. dollars [USD]; difference, -7,100 USD; 95% CI, -8.5 to -5.2 thousand USD; P < 0.001), and lower daily hospital cost (5,900 vs. 6,200 USD; difference, -310 USD per day; 95% CI, -420 to -200 USD; P < 0.001) when compared with no palliative care.Conclusions: In a nationally representative sample of adults who died during a hospitalization with septic shock, receipt of palliative care was associated with shorter length of stay and lower total and daily hospital costs. This finding was robust to adjustment for patient- and hospital-level confounders, though unmeasured confounders still could be affecting these findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason H. Maley
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine
- Beth Israel Deaconess Center for Healthcare Delivery Science, and
| | - Christopher M. Worsham
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine
- Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Bruce E. Landon
- Beth Israel Deaconess Center for Healthcare Delivery Science, and
- Division of General Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts; and
- Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Jennifer P. Stevens
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine
- Beth Israel Deaconess Center for Healthcare Delivery Science, and
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35
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Bowman BA, Back AL, Esch AE, Marshall N. Crisis Symptom Management and Patient Communication Protocols Are Important Tools for All Clinicians Responding to COVID-19. J Pain Symptom Manage 2020; 60:e98-e100. [PMID: 32276102 PMCID: PMC7141479 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.03.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2020] [Revised: 03/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Symptom management and skilled communication with patients and families are essential clinical services in the midst of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Although palliative care specialists have training in these skills, many frontline clinicians from other specialties do not. It is imperative that all clinicians responding to the coronavirus disease 2019 crisis have access to clinical tools to support symptom management and difficult patient and family communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brynn A Bowman
- Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Center to Advance Palliative Care, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
| | - Anthony L Back
- VitalTalk, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Andrew E Esch
- Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Center to Advance Palliative Care, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | - Nadine Marshall
- Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Center to Advance Palliative Care, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
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Anxiety, depression and psychosocial needs are the most frequent concerns reported by patients: preliminary results of a comparative explorative analysis of two hospital-based palliative care teams in Germany and Japan. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2020; 127:1481-1489. [PMID: 32419058 PMCID: PMC7578135 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-020-02186-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2020] [Accepted: 03/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
In the partnership between the medical departments of Würzburg University, Germany, and Nagasaki University, Japan, palliative care is a relevant topic. The aim of the study was to perform a comparative analysis of the hospital-based palliative care teams in Würzburg (PCT-W) and Nagasaki (PCT-N). Survey of staff composition and retrospective analysis of PCT patient charts in both PCTs were conducted. Patients self-assessed their symptoms in PCT-W and in Radiation Oncology Würzburg (RO-W). The (negative) quality indicator ‘percentage of deceased hospitalised patients with PCT contact for less than 3 days before death’ (Earle in Int J Qual Health Care 17(6):505–509, 2005) was analysed. Both PCTs follow a multidisciplinary team approach. PCT-N saw 410 cancer patients versus 853 patients for PCT-W (22.8% non-cancer patients). The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status at first contact with PCT-N was 3 or 4 in 39.3% of patients versus 79.0% for PCT-W. PCT-N was engaged in co-management longer than PCT-W (mean 20.7 days, range 1–102 versus mean 4.9 days, range 1–48). The most frequent patient-reported psychological symptom was anxiety (family anxiety: 98.3% PCT-W and 88.7% RO-W, anxiety 97.9% PCT-W and 85.9% RO-W), followed by depression (98.2% PCT-W and 80.3% RO-W). In 14 of the 148 deceased patients, PCT-N contact was initiated less than 3 days before death (9.4%) versus 121 of the 729 deceased PCT-W patients (16.6%). Psychological needs are highly relevant in both Germany and Japan, with more than 85% anxiety and depression in patients in the Japanese IPOS validation study (Sakurai in Jpn J Clin Oncol 49(3):257–262, 2019). This should be taken into account when implementing PCTs.
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Seow H, Qureshi D, Isenberg SR, Tanuseputro P. Access to Palliative Care during a Terminal Hospitalization. J Palliat Med 2020; 23:1644-1648. [PMID: 32023424 DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2019.0416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Research shows that access to palliative care can help patients avoid dying in hospital. However, access to palliative care services during the terminal hospitalization, specifically, has not been well studied. Objective: To determine whether access to palliative care varied by disease trajectory among terminal hospitalizations. Design, Setting, Subjects: We conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of decedents who died in hospital in Ontario, Canada between 2012 and 2015 by using linked administrative databases. Measurements: Using hospital and physician billing codes, we classified access to palliative care in three mutually exclusive groups of patients with terminal hospitalization: (1) main diagnosis for admission was palliative care; (2) main diagnosis was not palliative care, but the patient received palliative care specialist consultation; and (3) the patient did not receive any specialist palliative care. We conducted a logistic regression on odds of never receiving palliative care. Results: We identified 140,475 decedents who died in an inpatient hospital unit, which represents 42% of deaths. Among inpatient hospital deaths, 23% (n = 32,168) had palliative care listed as the main diagnosis for admission, 41% (n = 58,210) received specialist palliative care consultation, and 36% (n = 50,097) never had access to specialist palliative care. In our regression, dying of organ failure or frailty compared with cancer increased the odds of never receiving palliative care by 4.07 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.95-4.20) and 4.51 (95% CI: 4.35-4.68) times, respectively. Conclusions: A third of hospital deaths had no palliative care involvement. Access to specialist palliative care is particularly lower for noncancer decedents. Inpatient units play an important role in providing end-of-life care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsien Seow
- Department of Oncology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Sarina R Isenberg
- Temmy Latner Centre for Palliative Care and Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Division of Palliative Care, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Peter Tanuseputro
- Department of Medicine, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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