Hospice & Palliative Medicine
Latest News
Medicare hospital deaths decline, hospice usage increases
During 2000-2015, Medicare recipients became less likely to die in hospitals.
Conference Coverage
Palliative care may reduce suicide among lung cancer patients
Most patients who died by suicide had not received palliative care.
From the Journals
Colorectal surgeons see barriers to optimal palliative care
Colorectal surgeons say they have little training on palliative care for their stage IV colon cancer patients.
Daily News Podcast
MDedge Daily News: Is ‘medical aid in dying’ suicide?
And one in five Medicaid kids may have a mental health diagnosis.
From the Journals
Prompt palliative care cut hospital costs in pooled study
Average cost savings per hospital admission were $3,237 overall and were even greater for cancer patients.
Law & Medicine
Consent and DNR orders
Where have the courts set the lines over the issue of consent surrounding decisions to withhold CPR?
Latest News
Advance care planning benefit presents challenges
Some are having success using new Medicare billing codes, while other doctors say barriers are preventing usage.
Feature
End-of-life advice: More than 500,000 chat on Medicare’s dime
The 90-year-old woman in the San Diego–area nursing home was quite clear, said Karl Steinberg, MD. She didn’t want aggressive measures to prolong...
Feature
Cancer the most common diagnosis in palliative care patients
Survey shows that hospitalists are the main source of referrals to palliative care programs.
From the Journals
Research gaps identified for palliative surgical care
Palliative care in surgery remains understudied, according to a work group convened by the National Institutes of Health and the National...
Feature
Noncancer diagnoses on the rise in palliative care
Patients referred to palliative care are most likely to have cancer, but the proportion has gone down since 2009 as more patients with other...