Preplanned participation of paramedics in end-of-life care at home: A retrospective cohort study

Background: Paramedics commonly face acute crises of patients in palliative care, but their involvement in end-of-life care is not planned systematically. Aim: To evaluate a protocol for end-of-life care at home including pre-planned integration of paramedics and end-of-life care wards. Design: Para...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Palliative medicine 2021-03, Vol.35 (3), p.584-591
Main Authors: Surakka, Leena K, Peake, Minna M, Kiljunen, Minna M, Mäntyselkä, Pekka, Lehto, Juho T
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cohort analysis
Emergency services
End of life decisions
Home health care
Hospice care
Integrated care
Palliative care
Paramedics
Rural areas
Rural communities
Visits
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Summary:Background: Paramedics commonly face acute crises of patients in palliative care, but their involvement in end-of-life care is not planned systematically. Aim: To evaluate a protocol for end-of-life care at home including pre-planned integration of paramedics and end-of-life care wards. Design: Paramedic visits to patients in end-of-life care protocol were retrospectively studied. Setting/Participants: All of the patients who had registered for the protocol between 1 March 2015 and 28 February 2017 in North Karelia, Finland, were included in this study. Results: A total of 256 patients were registered for the protocol and 306 visits by paramedic were needed. A need for symptom control (38%) and transportation (29%) were the most common reasons for a visit. Paramedics visited 43% and 70% of the patients in areas with and without 24/7 palliative home care services, respectively (p 
ISSN:0269-2163
1477-030X
DOI:10.1177/0269216320981713