Table 7.
Content analysis of qualitative data
| CODES | N (%) |
|---|---|
| Question 4: What do you do for your patient if the wait for hospice referral is too long? | |
| • Palliative home care or nursing | 38 (31) |
| • Palliative physician consultation | 31 (25) |
| • Family physician manages while patient waits | 12 (10) |
| • Emergency department, hospital, or palliative care unit | 16 (13) |
| • Home visits | 11 (9) |
| • No experience | 13 (11) |
| • Private care | 1 (1) |
| • Total | 122 (100) |
| Question 10: How does interacting with the patient’s family factor into your decision to refer to hospice care? | |
| • Location of hospice* | 5 (5) |
| • Caregiver issue† | 31 (31) |
| • Palliative approach‡ | 18 (18) |
| • Family wishes and concerns | 23 (23) |
| • Patient preferences | 20 (20) |
| • Cultural background | 3 (3) |
| • Total | 100 (100) |
| Question 18: What obstacles have you encountered in making patient referrals to hospice care? | |
| • None or home care takes care of it§ | 36 (43) |
| • Lack of bed availability | 5 (6) |
| • Family perception or issues or family is not ready | 6 (7) |
| • Physician uncertainty, lack of knowledge, or unaware of process | 16 (19) |
| • Patient medical issues | 4 (5) |
| • Patient not accepting | 3 (4) |
| • Bureaucracy, disengagement, or lack of involvement | 13 (15) |
| • Understaffed palliative team | 1 (1) |
| • Total | 84 (100) |
*
Responses describing families’ input on choice of hospice site.
†
Responses considering issues of family burnout, coping, ability to provide care at home, etc.
‡
Responses describing families’ acceptance of a palliative or hospice approach to care.
§
The respondent indicated that he or she encounters no problems in making patient referrals to hospice care.