Palliative Care Consultation Affects How and Where Heart Failure Patients Die

Author(s):  
Richard Pham ◽  
Casey McQuade ◽  
Alex Somerfeld ◽  
Sandra Blakowski ◽  
Gavin W. Hickey

Objective: Determine the role of palliative care on terminal code status and setting of death for those with heart failure. Background: Although palliative care consultation (PCC) has increased for many conditions, PCC has not increased in those with cardiovascular disease. While it has been shown that the majority of those with heart failure die in medical facilities, the impact of PCC on terminal code status and setting of death requires further analysis. Methods: Patients admitted with heart failure between 2014-2015 at an academic VA Healthcare System were reviewed. Primary outcome was terminal code status. Secondary outcomes included setting of death, hospice utilization, and mortality scores. Student t-testing and Chi-square testing were performed where appropriate. Results: 334 patients were admitted with heart failure and had a median follow up time of 4.3 years. 196 patients died, with 122 (62%) receiving PCC and 74 (38%) without PCC. Patients were more likely to have terminal code statuses of comfort measures with PCC (OR = 4.6, p = 0.002), and less likely to be full code (OR = 0.09, p < 0.001). 146 patients had documented settings of death and were more likely to receive hospice services with PCC (OR 6.76, p < 0.001). A patient’s chance of dying at home was not increased with PCC (OR 0.49, p = 0.07), but they were more likely to die with inpatient hospice (OR = 17.03; p < 0.001). Conclusion: Heart failure patients who received PCC are more likely to die with more defined care preferences and with hospice services. This does not translate to dying at home.

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 174-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Paris ◽  
R. Sean Morrison

Palliative care consultation was associated with increased hospice use, decreased likelihood of dying in a hospital, and increased likelihood of dying at home.


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.


Author(s):  
Heather Carmichael ◽  
Hareklia Brackett ◽  
Maurice C Scott ◽  
Margaret M Dines ◽  
Sarah E Mather ◽  
...  

Abstract Despite significant morbidity and mortality for major burns, palliative care consultation (PCC) is underutilized in this population. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of a protocol using recommended “triggers” for PCC at a single academic burn center. This is a retrospective review of patient deaths over a four-year period. Use of life-sustaining treatments, comfort care (de-escalation of one or more life-sustaining treatments) and do not attempt resuscitation (DNAR) orders were determined. Use of PCC was compared during periods before and after a protocol establishing recommended triggers for early (&lt;72 hrs of admission) PCC was instituted in 2019. A total of 33 patient deaths were reviewed. Most patients were male (n=28, 85%) and median age was 62 years [IQR 42-72]. Median revised Baux score was 112 [IQR 81-133]. Many patients had life-sustaining interventions such as intubation, dialysis, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, often prior to admission. Amongst patients who survived &gt;24 hrs, 67% (n=14/21) had PCC. Frequency of PCC increased after protocol development, with 100% vs. 36% of these patients having PCC before death (p=0.004). However, even during the later period, less than half of patients had early PCC despite meeting criteria at admission. In conclusion, initiation of life-sustaining measures in severely injured burn patients occurs prior to or early during hospitalization. Thus, value-based early goals of care discussions are valuable to prevent interventions that do not align with patient values and assist with de-escalation of life-sustaining treatment. In this small sample, we found that while there was increasing use of PCC overall after developing a protocol of recommended triggers for consultation, many patients who met criteria at admission did not receive early PCC. Further research is needed to elucidate reasons why providers may be resistant to PCC.


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.


2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 671
Author(s):  
Michelle Crispo ◽  
Shelly Davgun ◽  
F. Lucas ◽  
Douglas Sawyer ◽  
Rebecca Hutchinson

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 685-691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Motoko Sano ◽  
Kiyohide Fushimi

Background: The administration of chemotherapy at the end of life is considered an aggressive life-prolonging treatment. The use of unnecessarily aggressive therapy in elderly patients at the end of life is an important health-care concern. Objective: To explore the impact of palliative care consultation (PCC) on chemotherapy use in geriatric oncology inpatients in Japan by analyzing data from a national database. Methods: We conducted a multicenter cohort study of patients aged ≥65 years, registered in the Japan National Administrative Healthcare Database, who died with advanced (stage ≥3) lung, stomach, colorectal, liver, or breast cancer while hospitalized between April 2010 and March 2013. The relationship between PCC and chemotherapy use in the last 2 weeks of life was analyzed using χ2 and logistic regression analyses. Results: We included 26 012 patients in this analysis. The mean age was 75.74 ± 6.40 years, 68.1% were men, 81.8% had recurrent cancer, 29.5% had lung cancer, and 29.5% had stomach cancer. Of these, 3134 (12%) received PCC. Among individuals who received PCC, chemotherapy was administered to 46 patients (1.5%) and was not administered to 3088 patients (98.5%). Among those not receiving PCC, chemotherapy was administered to 909 patients (4%) and was not administered to the remaining 21 978 patients (96%; odds ratio [OR], 0.35; 95% confidence interval, 0.26-0.48). The OR of chemotherapy use was higher in men, young–old, and patients with primary cancer. Conclusion: Palliative care consultation was associated with less chemotherapy use in elderly Japanese patients with cancer who died in the hospital setting.


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