TABLE II.
Documentation of goals-of-care discussions with patients receiving palliative chemotherapy for metastatic lung, pancreatic, breast, or colorectal cancer at the Cancer Centre of Southeastern Ontario, 2010–2015
| Discussion item | Documenter [n (%)]b | |
|---|---|---|
|
| ||
| Medical oncologist | Palliative care physician | |
| Patients | 456 | 214 |
| Goals of care | ||
| Documented | 26 (6) | 103 (48) |
| Not documented | 430 (94) | 112 (52) |
| Outcome of discussion | ||
| Not discussed | 430 (94) | 112 (52) |
| Symptom management | 3 (1) | 16 (8) |
| Medical interventions | 16 (4) | 56 (26) |
| Life sustaining measures | 1 (0) | 7 (3) |
| CPR | 4 (1) | 5 (2) |
| Not stated | 2 (0) | 18 (8) |
a
Only the first discussion of goals of care was captured in the study dataset for each patient. If a subsequent discussion took place, it was not measured. Data reflect only the initial discussion.
b
Percentages might not add to 100% because of rounding.