The potential cost savings of greater use of home- and hospice-based end of life care in England

Authors:
HATZIANDREU Evi, et al
Publisher:
Rand Corporation
Publication year:
2008
Pagination:
100p., bibliog.
Place of publication:
Santa Monica, CA

The objective of this study, commissioned by and prepared in collaboration with the National Audit Office (NAO), was to provide an estimate of the current financial impact of caring for patients during their last year of life and the potential implications of expansion of palliative care services. Its first phase reviewed the literature about end of life and palliative care for evidence of effectiveness and resource utilisation. The second phase was an economic analysis of end of life care in England, providing an overview of the current costs to the NHS for delivering services to patients, and modelling and quantifying the potential cost implications of decreasing reliance on acute care by higher levels of adoption of palliative care services. The implicit assumption is that the time patients spend in hospital could be reduced by transferring them to their preferred care setting at the end of their life, and that by providing end of life care in the community the number of unplanned emergency admissions and days spent in hospital could be decreased. Overall, the study results indicated that there is potential for palliative care services to reduce expenditure associated with hospitalisation while at the same time accommodating the expressed preferences of patients. The study is part of a broader Value for Money study that the NAO is undertaking into end of life care in England.

Subject terms:
home care, hospices, hospitals, patients, palliative care, cost effectiveness, end of life care, expenditure;
Content type:
research
Location(s):
England
Link:
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