The Efficacy of Hospice-In-Place Care Versus Traditional Inpatient Care.
Emily Butler, Claire Hanson, Taaseen Khan and 8 others
PMID 37651687WHAT IT FOUND
Family satisfaction scores were high in both hospice-in-place and standard hospital care.
The difference between groups did not reach statistical significance. Qualitative interviews identified communication, staff continuity, and family accommodations as key drivers of satisfaction.
Key findings
01Mean satisfaction scores were 4.54 for the hospice-in-place group and 4.14 for the non-hospice group, but the difference approached rather than reached statistical significance.
02Participants reported that inconsistent staffing and shift changes reduced their sense of support, while continuity of care with familiar nurses improved satisfaction.
03Clear, direct communication from providers and the ability to participate in shared decision making were cited as critical factors for family satisfaction during end-of-life care.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was small, with only 40 participants, which limits the ability to detect differences in satisfaction scores. Participants were not randomly assigned to hospice or non-hospice care, so the groups may have differed in other ways that affected satisfaction. The findings are specific to one academic medical center and may not apply to other hospitals. Recruiting families shortly after a death may have introduced response bias.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for this work.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the higher mean score in the hospice group as proof that hospice-in-place care is more effective than standard care. The difference was not statistically significant, and the study was not randomised, so other factors likely influenced the results.