The recognition of delirium in hospice inpatient units

Clinical experience suggests that screening for delirium on admission to a hospice is often omitted but early recognition and detection can improve outcome for these patients. In a series of audits we have evidenced low use of the recommended screening tool provided within the admission proforma of two hospices. In some circumstances this omission is appropriate to the clinical situation, however the results show this is not always the case. These results have highlighted implications for future work exploring the barriers to routine cognitive screening on admission to an inpatient unit.