TY - JOUR
T1 - Palliative care team consultation and quality of death and dying in a university hospital
T2 - A secondary analysis of a prospective study
AU - Brinkman-Stoppelenburg, Arianne
AU - Witkamp, Frederika E
AU - van Zuylen, Lia
AU - van der Rijt, Carin C D
AU - van der Heide, Agnes
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - PURPOSE: Involvement of palliative care experts improves the quality of life and satisfaction with care of patients who are in the last stage of life. However, little is known about the relation between palliative care expert involvement and quality of dying (QOD) in the hospital. We studied the association between palliative care team (PCT) consultation and QOD in the hospital as experienced by relatives.METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis of data from a prospective study among relatives of patients who died from cancer in a university hospital and compared characteristics and QOD of patients for whom the PCT was or was not consulted.RESULTS: 175 out of 343 (51%) relatives responded to the questionnaire. In multivariable linear regression PCT was associated with a 1.0 point better QOD (95% CI 0.07-1.96). In most of the subdomains of QOD, we found a non-significant trend towards a more favorable outcome for patients for whom the PCT was consulted. Patients for whom the PCT was consulted had more often discussed their preferences for medical treatment, had more often been aware of their imminent death and had more often been at peace with their imminent death. Further, patients for whom the PCT was consulted and their relatives had more often been able to say goodbye. Relatives had also more often been present at the moment of death when a PCT had been consulted.CONCLUSION: For patients dying in the hospital, palliative care consultation is associated with a favorable QOD.
AB - PURPOSE: Involvement of palliative care experts improves the quality of life and satisfaction with care of patients who are in the last stage of life. However, little is known about the relation between palliative care expert involvement and quality of dying (QOD) in the hospital. We studied the association between palliative care team (PCT) consultation and QOD in the hospital as experienced by relatives.METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis of data from a prospective study among relatives of patients who died from cancer in a university hospital and compared characteristics and QOD of patients for whom the PCT was or was not consulted.RESULTS: 175 out of 343 (51%) relatives responded to the questionnaire. In multivariable linear regression PCT was associated with a 1.0 point better QOD (95% CI 0.07-1.96). In most of the subdomains of QOD, we found a non-significant trend towards a more favorable outcome for patients for whom the PCT was consulted. Patients for whom the PCT was consulted had more often discussed their preferences for medical treatment, had more often been aware of their imminent death and had more often been at peace with their imminent death. Further, patients for whom the PCT was consulted and their relatives had more often been able to say goodbye. Relatives had also more often been present at the moment of death when a PCT had been consulted.CONCLUSION: For patients dying in the hospital, palliative care consultation is associated with a favorable QOD.
KW - Aged
KW - Aged, 80 and over
KW - Attitude to Death
KW - Death
KW - Family/psychology
KW - Female
KW - Hospitals, University
KW - Humans
KW - Male
KW - Middle Aged
KW - Neoplasms/psychology
KW - Netherlands
KW - Palliative Care/methods
KW - Prospective Studies
KW - Quality of Life/psychology
KW - Referral and Consultation
KW - Surveys and Questionnaires
KW - Terminal Care/methods
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0201191
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0201191
M3 - Article
C2 - 30138316
VL - 13
SP - e0201191
JO - PLoS ONE
JF - PLoS ONE
SN - 1932-6203
IS - 8
ER -