OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of routinely delivered home-based end-of-life care on hospital use at the end of life and place of death. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis using matched controls and administrative data. SETTING: Community-based care in England. PARTICIPANTS: 29,538 people aged over 18 who received Marie Curie nursing support compared with 29,538 controls individually matched on variables including: age, socioeconomic deprivation, prior hospital use, number of chronic conditions and prior diagnostic history. INTERVENTION: Home-based end-of-life nursing care delivered by the Marie Curie Nursing Service (MCNS), compared with end-of-life care available to those who did not receive MCNS care. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Proportion of people who died at home; numbers of emergency and elective inpatient admissions, outpatient attendances and attendances at emergency departments in the period until death; and notional costs of hospital care. RESULTS: Intervention patients were significantly more likely to die at home and less likely to die in hospital than matched controls (unadjusted OR 6.16, 95% CI 5.94 to 6.38, p<0.001). Hospital activity was significantly lower among intervention than matched control patients (emergency admissions: 0.14 vs 0.44 admissions per person, p<0.001) and average costs across all hospital services were lower (unadjusted average costs per person, £610 (intervention patients) vs £1750 (matched controls), p<0.001). Greater activity and cost differences were seen in those patients who had been receiving home nursing for longer. CONCLUSIONS: Home-based end-of-life care offers the potential to reduce demand for acute hospital care and increase the number of people able to die at home.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of routinely delivered home-based end-of-life care on hospital use at the end of life and place of death. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis using matched controls and administrative data. SETTING: Community-based care in England. PARTICIPANTS: 29,538 people aged over 18 who received Marie Curie nursing support compared with 29,538 controls individually matched on variables including: age, socioeconomic deprivation, prior hospital use, number of chronic conditions and prior diagnostic history. INTERVENTION: Home-based end-of-life nursing care delivered by the Marie Curie Nursing Service (MCNS), compared with end-of-life care available to those who did not receive MCNS care. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Proportion of people who died at home; numbers of emergency and elective inpatient admissions, outpatient attendances and attendances at emergency departments in the period until death; and notional costs of hospital care. RESULTS: Intervention patients were significantly more likely to die at home and less likely to die in hospital than matched controls (unadjusted OR 6.16, 95% CI 5.94 to 6.38, p<0.001). Hospital activity was significantly lower among intervention than matched control patients (emergency admissions: 0.14 vs 0.44 admissions per person, p<0.001) and average costs across all hospital services were lower (unadjusted average costs per person, £610 (intervention patients) vs £1750 (matched controls), p<0.001). Greater activity and cost differences were seen in those patients who had been receiving home nursing for longer. CONCLUSIONS: Home-based end-of-life care offers the potential to reduce demand for acute hospital care and increase the number of people able to die at home.
Authors: H Seow; R Pataky; B Lawson; E M O'Leary; R Sutradhar; K Fassbender; K McGrail; L Barbera; M D Mpa; F Burge; S J Peacock; J S Hoch Journal: Curr Oncol Date: 2016-02-29 Impact factor: 3.677
Authors: M Pellizzari; D Hui; E Pinato; M Lisiero; S Serpentini; L Gubian; F Figoli; M Cancian; C De Chirico; E Ferroni; F Avossa; M Saugo Journal: Support Care Cancer Date: 2016-12-02 Impact factor: 3.603
Authors: Paul R Duberstein; Michael Chen; Michael Hoerger; Ronald M Epstein; Laura M Perry; Sule Yilmaz; Fahad Saeed; Supriya G Mohile; Sally A Norton Journal: J Pain Symptom Manage Date: 2019-10-19 Impact factor: 3.612