Table 2.
HALIFAX MUNICIPALITY RESIDENTS ADMITTED TO THE CAPITAL HEALTH INTEGRATED PALLIATIVE SERVICE (CHIPCS) WITH AT LEAST ONE DAY TO POTENTIALLY VISIT THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT (n=3,221)
| Characteristic | Number of Patients (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| No ED visits (n=2,105) | At least one ED visit (n=1,116) | |
| Sex | ||
| female | 1,064 (50.6) | 561 (50.3) |
| male | 1,041 (49.5) | 554 (49.7) |
| Age§, years | ||
| <65 | 612 (29.1) | 418 (37.5) |
| 65–74 | 571 (27.2) | 282 (25.3) |
| 75–84 | 614 (29.2) | 297 (26.6) |
| 85+ | 304 (14.5) | 118 (10.6) |
| Year of admission to CHIPCS† | ||
| 1999 | 266 (12.6) | 168 (15.1) |
| 2000 | 326 (15.5) | 163 (14.6) |
| 2001 | 277 (13.2) | 163 (14.6) |
| 2002 | 310 (14.7) | 201 (18.0) |
| 2003 | 330 (15.7) | 162 (14.5) |
| 2004 | 339 (16.1) | 151 (13.5) |
| 2005 | 257 (12.2) | 108 (9.7) |
| Year of death | ||
| 1999 | 197 (9.4) | 96 (8.6) |
| 2000 | 308 (14.6) | 135 (12.1) |
| 2001 | 283 (13.4) | 153 (13.7) |
| 2002 | 295 (14.0) | 183 (16.4) |
| 2003 | 337 (16.0) | 190 (17.0) |
| 2004 | 326 (15.5) | 176 (15.8) |
| 2005 | 359 (17.1) | 183 (16.4) |
| Integrated program implementation‡ | ||
| pre (January 1999 to June 2004) | 1,674 (79.5) | 941 (84.3) |
| post (July 2004 to December 2005) | 431 (20.5) | 175 (15.7) |
| Survival§ (days from admission to CHIPCS to death) | ||
| 0–30 | 697 (33.1) | 147 (13.2) |
| 31–60 | 471 (22.4) | 183 (16.4) |
| 61–90 | 271 (12.9) | 142 (12.7) |
| 91–120 | 173 (8.2) | 116 (10.4) |
| 121 + | 493 (23.4) | 528 (47.3) |
| Location of death§ | ||
| hospital death (not in PCP unit) | 438 (20.8) | 378 (33.9) |
| palliative care unit | 437 (20.8) | 406 (36.4) |
| home | 1,137 (54.0) | 302 (27.1) |
| long-term care facility | 93 (4.4) | 29 (2.6) |
| Census residency indicator | ||
| urban | 1,777 (84.4) | 922 (82.6) |
| rural | 268 (12.7) | 169 (15.1) |
| missing | 60 (2.9) | 25 (2.2) |
| Neighbourhood income quintile | ||
| low | 396 (18.8) | 234 (21.0) |
| lower middle | 390 (18.5) | 208 (18.6) |
| middle | 426 (20.2) | 214 (19.2) |
| upper middle | 426 (20.2) | 198 (17.7) |
| upper | 407 (19.3) | 237 (21.2) |
| missing | 60 (2.9) | 25 (2.2) |
| Diagnostic summary* | ||
| cancer only | 1,665 (79.8) | 924 (83.3) |
| other disease, no cancer | 213 (10.2) | 106 (9.6) |
| cancer and other | 208 (10.0) | 79 (7.1) |
| Caregiver relationship‡ | ||
| spouse or common law spouse | 1,088 (55.2) | 563 (53.1) |
| child | 638 (32.4) | 305 (28.8) |
| parents/other relations | 183 (9.3) | 150 (14.1) |
| friend/other | 61 (3.1) | 43 (4.1) |
| Caregiver lives with patient | ||
| yes | 1,352 (64.2) | 683 (61.2) |
| no | 753 (35.8) | 433 (38.8) |
| Primary reasons for referral to CHIPCS (responses are not exclusive) | ||
| pain | 880 (41.8) | 439 (39.3) |
| other symptoms | 1,063 (50.5) | 529 (47.4) |
| support* (family/patient/staff) | 784 (37.2) | 407 (36.5) |
| home consultation/care | 533 (25.3) | 252 (22.6) |
| terminal/end of life care§ | 228 (10.8) | 72 (6.5) |
| respite care | 2 (0.1) | 0 (0.0) |
| grief/bereavement | 11 (0.5) | 4 (0.4) |
| decision making | 67 (3.2) | 27 (2.4) |
| unclear† | 29 (1.4) | 4 (0.4) |
| ‘Potential ED’ days§ (total survival-total inpatient time following CHIPCS admission) | ||
| 1–31 | 898 (42.7) | 260 (23.3) |
| 32–93 | 655 (31.1) | 313 (28.1) |
| 94+ | 552 (26.2) | 543 (48.7) |
| ‘Potential ED’ days§ | ||
| mean (standard deviation) | 85.3 (131.8) | 176.7 (250.8) |
| median (range) | 41 (1–1,464) | 89.5 (1–2,223) |
| Total acute hospital (inpatient) days§ | ||
| mean (standard deviation) | 10.9 (21.1) | 24.9 (45.2) |
| median (range) | 2 (0–270) | 12 (0–979) |
| Total days at home (excluding nursing home)§ | ||
| mean (standard deviation) | 82.9 (129.9) | 172.5 (246.8) |
| median (range) | 39 (0–1,464) | 86 (0–2,223) |
| Total days in a long term care facility | ||
| mean (standard deviation) | 2.3 (27.5) | 4.0 (52.4) |
| median (range) | 0 (0–854) | 0 (0–1,534) |
Note: Some frequencies may not add to total values due to missing data
Chi square tests of association, Wilcoxon rank sum scores:
*
p<0.05;
†
p<0.01;
‡
p<0.001;
§
p<0.0001