Buck, Gary Cummings, Mary Curran, Barbara Gotsch, Audrey Lunceford, Janet L. Meudell, Bonner Muenz, Larry Barofsky, Ivan Grower, Ronnie
Verschenen in:
Journal of psychosocial oncology
Paginering:
Jaargang 3 (1985) nr. 2 pagina's 83-96
Jaar:
1985-09-13
Inhoud:
This article reports a descriptive study of three freestanding demonstration hospices funded by the National Cancer Institute. Information is presented on the origin and organization of each hospice, its staffing pattern, the characteristics of all patients admitted during the ninemonth study period, and patient use of the hospice program (home care or inpatient). Only 258 (42.7 percent) of the original sample of 604 patients completed the study. These patients differed from those who were ineligible to participate either for medical reasons or for reasons involving activities of daily living and symptoms such as dyspnea, anorexia, fatigue. and dysphagia. The study also demonstrated that the organizational milieu in which the hospices were established determined the patterns of care the patients received. This article is the first of a series of articles that summarize the data from the study.