Hospice care for children: past, present, and future.
Of the 100,000 children who die each year in the United States, close to 15,000 children could benefit from hospice/home care services. This article describes the concept of pediatric hospice care, reviews the Martinson study that was conducted in the 1970s, gives a chronological report on some institutions that provide hospice care for children in the United States and other parts of the world, and discusses the future of pediatric hospice care.
School of Nursing, Department of Family Health Care Nursing, University of California, San Francisco 94143-0606.
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Martinson
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005544:Forecasting; D006302:Health Services Research; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D006738:Hospices / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D009026:Mortality