The Influence of Race on End-of-Life Choices Following a Counselor-Based Palliative Consultation
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-1-2015
Publication Title
American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
DOI
10.1177/1049909113506782
ISSN
1938-2715
Abstract
Black Americans are more likely than whites to choose aggressive medical care at the end of life. We present a retrospective cohort study of 2843 patients who received a counselor-based palliative care consultation at a large US southeastern hospital. Before the palliative consultation, 72.8% of the patients had no restrictions in care, and only 4.6% had chosen care and comfort only (CCO). After the consult, these choices dramatically changed, with only 17.5% remaining full code and 43.3% choosing CCO. Both before and after palliative consultation, blacks chose more aggressive medical care than whites, but racial differences diminished after the counselor-based consultation. Both African American and white patients and families receiving a counselor-based palliative consultation in the hospital make profound changes in their preferences for life-sustaining treatments.
Recommended Citation
Benton, Kathleen, James H. Stephens, Robert L. Vogel, Gerald R. Ledlow, Richard Ackermann, Carol Babcock, Georgia McCook.
2015.
"The Influence of Race on End-of-Life Choices Following a Counselor-Based Palliative Consultation."
American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, 32 (1): 84-89.
doi: 10.1177/1049909113506782
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/health-policy-facpubs/21
