Patient predictors of hospice choice. Hospital versus home care programs

Area of Science:

• Health Economics
• Palliative Care Research
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Home care hospices may offer cost savings compared to hospital-based care.
• Understanding patient characteristics is crucial for hospice placement.
• Variations in hospice models exist where patient choice is possible.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify patient characteristics differentiating hospital-based and home care hospice admissions.
• To analyze factors influencing the choice between hospice models.
• To compare prehospice care episodes between different hospice types.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the National Hospice Study.
• Employed multivariate logistic regression analysis.
• Examined patient characteristics and prehospice care episodes.

Main Results:

• Availability of home support and severity of nursing care needs were key discriminators.
• Hospital-based hospice patients often had more complex nursing care requirements.
• Prehospice care episodes were longer for patients admitted to hospital-based hospices.

Conclusions:

• Patient support systems at home and nursing care needs significantly impact hospice model selection.
• Differences in patient profiles exist between home and hospital-based hospice settings.
• Further research can optimize hospice resource allocation and patient-centered care.