scholarly journals Development of Potential Metrics for Successful Palliative Care Consultation in Population of Patients Receiving Mechanical Circulatory Support (MCS)

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. S73
Author(s):  
Shilpee Sinha ◽  
Carey Belcher ◽  
Alexia Torke ◽  
Marco Caccamo ◽  
Irmina Gradus-Pizlo
Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelani Grant ◽  
Louis Vincent ◽  
Bertrand Ebner ◽  
Jennifer Maning ◽  
Igor Vaz ◽  
...  

Introduction: Hospitalizations associated with advanced heart failure (HF) requiring mechanical circulatory support (MCS) are usually associated with a high morbidity, mortality and a protracted hospital course. Prior studies have shown that the early inclusion of palliative care specialist is associated with better end-of-life experiences. Methods: The National Inpatient Sample Database was queried from 2012 to 2017 for relevant International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-9 and ICD-10 procedural and diagnostic codes to identify patients above 18 years with advanced HF admitted with cardiogenic shock requiring MCS. Baseline characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were compared among patients evaluated by palliative care and those who were not. A p-value of <0.001 was considered statistically significant. Results: There were 748,360 patients hospitalized for advanced HF complicated by cardiogenic shock requiring MCS, of these a palliative care consult was placed in 118,015 (15.8%) patients. Patients evaluated by palliative care were older (70.6±14.9 vs. 64.9±16.3 years old, p<0.001) and had a higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation (39.3 vs. 35.1%,p<0.001) and chronic kidney disease (40.4 vs. 33.3, p<0.001), however had lower hypertension (57.4 vs. 59.7%, p<0.001), diabetes (35.4 vs. 36.5%, p<0.001), coronary artery disease (51.2 vs. 58.4%, p<0.001) and acute coronary syndromes (39.2 vs. 45.0%, p<0.001). Consulting palliative care was associated with a shorter length of stay (8.8±12.0 vs. 11.9±15.5 days, p<0.001), lower total hospital cost ($161,972±265,156 vs. $219,114±318,387, p<0.001) and higher Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders (30.8 vs. 5.8%, p<0.001). Mortality rates were higher in the palliative care cohort (73.4 vs. 29.4%, p<0.001). Conclusions: Despite the high morbidity and mortality associated with advanced HF patients with cardiogenic shock requiring MCS, the overall prevalence of palliative care consultation is exceedingly low. DNR orders were more prevalent in patients seen by the palliative care service. This study highlights the underutilization of palliative care services in this patient population, precluding any perceived benefit in end of life experiences.


Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 468
Author(s):  
Kyle D. Hope ◽  
Priya N. Bhat ◽  
William J. Dreyer ◽  
Barbara A. Elias ◽  
Jaime L. Jump ◽  
...  

Heart failure is a life-changing diagnosis for a child and their family. Pediatric patients with heart failure experience significant morbidity and frequent hospitalizations, and many require advanced therapies such as mechanical circulatory support and/or heart transplantation. Pediatric palliative care is an integral resource for the care of patients with heart failure along its continuum. This includes support during the grief of a new diagnosis in a child critically ill with decompensated heart failure, discussion of goals of care and the complexities of mechanical circulatory support, the pensive wait for heart transplantation, and symptom management and psychosocial support throughout the journey. In this article, we discuss the scope of pediatric palliative care in the realm of pediatric heart failure, ventricular assist device (VAD) support, and heart transplantation. We review the limited, albeit growing, literature in this field, with an added focus on difficult conversation and decision support surrounding re-transplantation, HF in young adults with congenital heart disease, the possibility of destination therapy VAD, and the grimmest decision of VAD de-activation.


Author(s):  
Karol Quelal ◽  
Olankami Olagoke ◽  
Anoj Shahi ◽  
Andrea Torres ◽  
Olisa Ezegwu ◽  
...  

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.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 163-167
Author(s):  
Jon Rosenberg ◽  
Allie Massaro ◽  
James Siegler ◽  
Stacey Sloate ◽  
Matthew Mendlik ◽  
...  

Background: Palliative care improves quality of life in patients with malignancy; however, it may be underutilized in patients with high-grade gliomas (HGGs). We examined the practices regarding palliative care consultation (PCC) in treating patients with HGGs in the neurological intensive care unit (NICU) of an academic medical center. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients admitted to the NICU from 2011 to 2016 with a previously confirmed histopathological diagnosis of HGG. The primary outcome was the incidence of an inpatient PCC. We also evaluated the impact of PCC on patient care by examining its association with prespecified secondary outcomes of code status amendment to do not resuscitate (DNR), discharge disposition, 30-day mortality, and 30-day readmission rate, length of stay, and place of death. Results: Ninety (36% female) patients with HGGs were identified. Palliative care consultation was obtained in 16 (18%) patients. Palliative care consultation was associated with a greater odds of code status amendment to DNR (odds ratio [OR]: 18.15, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.01-65.73), which remained significant after adjustment for confounders (OR: 27.20, 95% CI: 5.49-134.84), a greater odds of discharge to hospice (OR: 24.93, 95% CI: 6.48-95.88), and 30-day mortality (OR: 6.40, 95% CI: 1.96-20.94). Conclusion: In this retrospective study of patients with HGGs admitted to a university-based NICU, PCC was seen in a minority of the sample. Palliative care consultation was associated with code status change to DNR and hospice utilization. Further study is required to determine whether these findings are generalizable and whether interventions that increase PCC utilization are associated with improved quality of life and resource allocation for patients with HGGs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (10) ◽  
pp. 2365-2372
Author(s):  
Katherine R. Courtright ◽  
Trishya L. Srinivasan ◽  
Vanessa L. Madden ◽  
Jason Karlawish ◽  
Stephanie Szymanski ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Lees ◽  
S. Weerasinghe ◽  
N. Lamond ◽  
T. Younis ◽  
Ravi Ramjeesingh

Background Palliative care (pc) consultation has been associated with less aggressive care at end of life in a number of malignancies, but the effect of the consultation timing has not yet been fully characterized. For patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer (upcc), aggressive and resource-intensive treatment at the end of life can be costly, but not necessarily of better quality. In the present study, we investigated the association, if any, between the timing of specialist pc consultation and indicators of aggressive care at end of life in patients with upcc.Methods This retrospective cohort study examined the potential effect of the timing of specialist pc consultation on key indicators of aggressive care at end of life in all patients diagnosed with upcc in Nova Scotia between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2015. Statistical analysis included univariable and multivariable logistic regression.Results In the 365 patients identified for inclusion in the study, specialist pc consultation was found to be associated with decreased odds of experiencing an indicator of aggressive care at end of life; however, the timing of the consultation was not significant. Residency in an urban area was associated with decreased odds of experiencing an indicator of aggressive care at end of life. We observed no association between experiencing an indicator of aggressive care at end of life and consultation with medical oncology or radiation oncology.Conclusions Regardless of timing, specialist pc consultation was associated with decreased odds of experiencing an indicator of aggressive care at end of life. That finding provides further evidence to support the integral role of pc in managing patients with a life-limiting malignancy.


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