Here are five things to know from the study:
- Researchers from Nashville-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center analyzed data from 33,744 Medicare enrollees who died from breast, prostate, pancreatic or lung cancer, according to a Feb. 21 news release from the hospital.
- Of those patients, 45% received potentially aggressive end-of-life care, defined as multiple acute care visits within days of death.
- While 70% of patients received hospice care within their last month of life, more than 16% of those patients received hospice care for less than three days.
- Overall use of advanced care planning and palliative care among Medicare enrollees was less than 25%.
- “Having clear and honest communication between patients, their caregivers and providers regarding disease prognosis and advanced planning is crucial,” Youngmin Kwon, PhD, a research fellow with the department of health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said in the release. “At the same time, policies to increase access to supportive care and ensure an adequate workforce of palliative care providers are necessary to address structural barriers to high-quality care.”
Read the full study here.