title: Pediatric hospital care for children with life-threatening illness and the role of palliative care.
abstract: Under increasing pressure to contain costs, hospitals are challenged to provide high-quality care to an increasingly complex group of children with life-threatening illness (LTI) that often worsen over time. Pediatric palliative care is an essential component of optimal hospital care delivery for these children and their families. This article describes (1) the current landscape of pediatric hospital care for children with LTI, (2) the connection between palliative care and hospital care for such children, and (3) the relationship between health care reform and palliative care for children with LTI.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Stanford University School of Medicine, 770 Welch Road, Suite 100, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA. Electronic address: jbogetz@stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Jori F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Bogetz
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Palliative Care and Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
authors.forename: Christina K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Ullrich
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Room 212.2, 21 Autumn Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Jay G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Berry
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D016638:Critical Illness / Q000628:therapy*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D006760:Hospitalization; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards
keywords: Child; Chronic disease; Health care reform; Hospital care; Hospitalization; Life-threatening illness; Palliative care; Pediatric