Who needs a palliative care consult?: the Hamilton Chart Audit tool

Area of Science:

• Palliative Care
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Palliative care services are expanding in hospitals, yet many patients who could benefit are not receiving them.
• Identifying patients eligible for and most likely to benefit from palliative care is challenging due to prognostic uncertainty and varied definitions of end-of-life care.
• The demand for specialized palliative care providers may exceed supply, necessitating standardized identification methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a tool for identifying patients with palliative care needs.
• To standardize the assessment of palliative care needs within healthcare institutions.
• To inform the development and expansion of palliative care services.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Hamilton Chart Audit (H-CAT) tool.
• Retrospective audit of 222 patient records from a single institution.
• Utilizing the H-CAT tool to assess palliative care needs.

Main Results:

• The H-CAT tool was developed to aid in identifying patients who may benefit from palliative care.
• A retrospective audit demonstrated the tool's application in assessing palliative care needs.
• The study provides a method for institutions to assess population needs for palliative care services.

Conclusions:

• Standardized tools are crucial for identifying patients who require palliative care interventions.
• The Hamilton Chart Audit (H-CAT) offers a practical method for assessing palliative care needs.
• Effective identification strategies are essential for optimizing palliative care delivery and resource allocation.