Patient predictors of hospice choice. Hospital versus home care programs.
Research findings indicate cost savings associated with home care hospices, while hospital-based hospices can be as expensive as conventional care. Based on National Hospice Study data, this article identifies the characteristics of patients admitted to hospital-based and home care hospices in those areas of the country where a choice of hospice model was possible. Multivariate logistic regression indicates that the significant discriminating factors between the two patient populations relate to the availability of supportive care at home and the severity of nursing care problems at the time of hospice entry. Reinforcing selected pre-existing differences, an examination of prehospice had longer episodes of care than was the case for home care hospice patients.
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006738:Hospices / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006757:Hospital Units / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008913:Minority Groups; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010361:Patients / Q000145:classification*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012737:Sex Factors; D012944:Social Support; D014481:United States