title: The impact of hospice inpatient care on the quality of life of patients terminally ill with cancer.
abstract: This study explored the expectations and experiences of patients with terminal cancer in a hospice inpatient environment in an attempt to evaluate their quality of life and the impact of the care and services provided. A total of 52 patients terminally ill with cancer from 11 hospice units in Hong Kong participated in the study. Data were collected from patients by devising a Hospice Care Performance Inventory (HCPI), which was an interview schedule consisting of 25 items. The HCPI was developed after a review of the literature on the quality of life experienced by patients with advanced cancer and the aims of hospice units in Hong Kong. Each item was rated by the patient on a Likert scale in terms of its importance and the perceived effectiveness of the care provided. The study identified six issues in which expectations did not seem to match effectiveness. These issues indicated areas in which improvement could be attempted to enhance the quality of life for the patients. The most important was maximizing self-care and mobility. Two issues were identified in which effectiveness was high and importance to the patient relatively low. One of these issues was pain management, and the other was spiritual care.
authors.affiliation: Hospice Unit, Ruttonjee Hospital, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: E W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Yeung
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: French
authors.forename: A O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Leung
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong; D017051:Hospice Care; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D011788:Quality of Life; D019452:Terminally Ill / Q000523:psychology*