Best Practices in End of Life and Palliative Care in the Emergency Department

Three-quarters of patients over the age of 65 visit the emergency department (ED) in the last six months of their lives. Approximately 20% of hospice residents have ED visits. These patients must decide whether to receive emergency care that prioritizes life support, which may not achieve their desi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inClinics in geriatric medicine Vol. 39; no. 4; p. 575
Main Authors Prachanukool, Thidathit, George, Naomi, Bowman, Jason, Ito, Kaori, Ouchi, Kei
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.11.2023
Subjects
Death
Emergency Service, Hospital
Humans
Palliative Care
Referral and Consultation
Palliative care
Emergency department
End-of-life care
Emergency medicine
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:Three-quarters of patients over the age of 65 visit the emergency department (ED) in the last six months of their lives. Approximately 20% of hospice residents have ED visits. These patients must decide whether to receive emergency care that prioritizes life support, which may not achieve their desired outcomes and might even be futile. The patients in these end-of-life stages could benefit from early palliative care or hospice consultation before they present to the ED. Furthermore, early integration of palliative care at the time of ED visits is important in establishing the goals of the entire treatment.
ISSN:1879-8853
DOI:10.1016/j.cger.2023.05.011