Hospital palliative care referrals for ALS often came late in the disease course
Original source
Palliative Care Involvement in Hospitalized Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Patients. (opens in a new tab)Compass summarised this from the study's abstract.
Study details
- Studied in
- Human
A retrospective review examined palliative care involvement among people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) admitted to one tertiary-care hospital from 2006 to 2019. Referrals were mainly for symptom management and complex decision-making. About half of the patients died within three months of referral, and most of those deaths occurred within one week, highlighting the need for timely palliative care.
Why this matters
Hospital stays may provide important opportunities for palliative care as ALS progresses and care needs increase. The findings suggest that many patients were referred when they already had poor function and a guarded prognosis, but the study does not show whether earlier referral improved outcomes or changed treatment.
Limitations and context
This was a retrospective review at a single tertiary-care facility, covering admissions from 2006 to 2019. It describes patients referred to the hospital palliative care team and cannot establish that late referral caused the reported outcomes or determine the effects of earlier palliative care.