Skip to main content

Screening Tool Can Streamline Palliative Care Consults in the ICU

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 3, 2024.

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 3, 2024 -- Integrating a simple screening tool upon intensive care unit (ICU) admission can streamline requests for palliative care consultations, according to a study published online April 1 in Critical Care Nurse.

Traci N. Phillips, D.N.P., from Mercy Health Anderson Hospital in Cincinnati, and colleagues created a palliative care screening tool with clinical indicators for nurses to use upon patient admission to the ICU. The analysis included 267 patients.

The researchers reported that 22 percent of patients had positive screening tool results compared with 11.6 percent identified with the traditional consultative method. Patients identified for referral without use of the screening tool were hospitalized a mean of six days until the consultation was requested.

"The screening tool was designed to be completed on admission by the nursing staff and provides the ability to directly refer patients with positive screening tool results for formal palliative care consultation," the authors write. "Providing the ICU staff the autonomy to consult palliative care services by using an evidence-based tool can improve the efficiency of appropriate consultations while providing opportunities for advance care planning discussions and increasing patient access to palliative care services before discharge."

Abstract/Full Text

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted April 2024

Read this next

BMI Cutoff of 30 for Obesity May Be Too High for Middle-Aged, Older Adults

FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- The optimal body mass index (BMI) cutoff point appears to be 27 kg/m2 for detecting obesity in middle-aged and older adults, according to a study presented...

Emergency Inguinal Hernia Surgery Rates Increased With Lower Country Income

FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- For patients undergoing inguinal hernia surgery, emergency surgery rates increase from high- to low-income countries, according to a study published online...

Maternal Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein Levels Higher in Black Than White Women

FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- Maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels are higher in Black than White pregnant women, supporting the use of accounting for these differences in...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.