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Do patients die well in your emergency department?
Author(s) -
Bradley Victoria,
Burney Claire,
Hughes Geoff
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
emergency medicine australasia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.602
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1742-6723
pISSN - 1742-6731
DOI - 10.1111/1742-6723.12099
Subject(s) - palliative care , medicine , emergency department , family medicine , gold standard (test) , nursing
Objectives Although the role of the ED in the management of patients needing palliative care is recognised internationally, there are little A ustralasian data on this issue. This study aimed to determine the current knowledge and attitude to the provision of palliative care in A ustralasian EDs . Methods All ED directors in A ustralasia were invited to complete an online survey about the provision of palliative care in their department. Quantitative data were described using counts and proportions, and qualitative data were summarised thematically. Results Of 165 eligible ED directors, 35 completed the survey (22%; 95% CI , 15–28%). Only 17/35 (49%; 95% CI , 32–65%) believed that ED provided good palliative care, and 28/35 (80%; 95% CI , 67–93%) were unaware of international gold standard palliative care protocols. Most had access to hospital‐based palliative care specialists 27/35 (77%; 95% CI , 63–91%); however, only 5/27 (19%; 95% CI , 4–33%) used them. Few EDs undertake formal training in palliative care 10/35 (29%; 95% CI , 16–45%). Respondents showed concern about the quality of palliative care they provide and advocated for more palliative care training. Conclusion Although limited by the low response rate, this survey indicates that there is a need and a desire for greater integration of the values and standards of high‐quality palliative care in A ustralasian EDs .