Children With Intellectual Disability and Hospice Utilization: The Moderating Effect of Residential Care

Children with intellectual disability commonly lack access to pediatric hospice care services. Residential care may be a critical component in providing access to hospice care for children with intellectual disability.

This research tested whether residential care intensifies the relationship between intellectual disability and hospice utilization (ie, hospice enrollment, hospice length of stay), while controlling for demographic characteristics.

Multivariate regression analyses were conducted using 2008 to 2010 California Medicaid claims data.

The odds of children with intellectual disability in residential care enrolling in hospice care were 3 times higher than their counterparts in their last year of life, when controlling for demographics. Residential care promoted hospice enrollment among children with intellectual disability. The interaction between intellectual disability and residential care was not related to hospice length of stay. Residential care did not attenuate or intensify the relationship between intellectual disability and hospice length of stay.

The findings highlight the important role of residential care in facilitating hospice enrollment for children with intellectual disability. More research is needed to understand the capability of residential care staff to identify children with intellectual disability earlier in their end-of-life trajectory and initiate longer hospice length of stays.