Developing a successful palliative care service in an acute care setting.
Hospitalized patients with chronic illness require the same aggressive symptom management as those of hospice patients. Unfortunately, many individuals with chronic conditions require aggressive symptom management but they are not candidates for hospice admission. The authors discuss a palliative care service developed in a 371-bed community hospital to address this need. This consult service has improved patient care without draining hospital resources.
Oncology and Clinical Support Services, Central Baptist Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky 40503, USA. kross@bhsi.com
Kay
K
Ross
Sandy
S
Mathis
Dorothy
D
Brockopp
D004180:Direct Service Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D007902:Length of Stay; D024802:Nurse's Role; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000639:trends; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011787:Quality of Health Care