Table 2.
Location of death, ‘no CPR’ orders, palliative care team involvement and health care utilization by year
| Variable | 1998, n=35 | 2005, n=27 | 2012, n=23 | P value* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number (%) of deaths in PICU | 33 (94.3) | 16 (59.3) | 16 (69.6) | <0.01 |
| Number (%) with a ‘no CPR’ order at time of death | 11 (31.4) | 24 (88.9) | 20 (87.0) | <0.01 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) number of days from ‘no CPR’ order to death | 0 (0–1.0) | 3.5 (1.0–10.5) | 4.0 (1.0–13.5) | <0.01 |
| Number (%) with a palliative care consultation prior to death | <5† (<10.0)† | 19 (70.4) | 17 (73.9) | <0.01 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) number of admissions to tertiary hospital over lifetime | 1.0 (1.0–3.0) | 3.0 (1.0–8.0) | 1.5 (1.0–4.0) | 0.04 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) number of admissions to tertiary hospital in last year of life | 1.0 (1.0–3.0) | 2.0 (1.0–4.0) | 1.0 (1.0–2.0) | <0.01 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) proportion of days spent in tertiary hospital over lifetime | 2.6 (0.5–18.9) | 11.5 (2.3–21.4) | 5.1 (0.3–34.0) | 0.17 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) number of transfers to PICU over lifetime | 1.0 (1.0–2.0) | 1.0 (1.0–2.0) | 1.0 (1.0–1.0) | 0.12 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) number of transfers to PICU in last year of life | 1.0 (1.0–1.0) | 1.0 (0–1.0) | 1.0 (1.0–1.0) | 0.06 |
| Median (25th–75th percentile) length of stay in hospital during final admission (days) | 6.0 (2.0–30.0) | 12.0 (3.0–23.0) | 12.0 (2.0–28.0) | 0.64 |
CPR Cardiopulmonary resuscitation; PICU Paediatric intensive care unit.
*P value is derived from a chi-square test for categorical variables and from a Kruskal–Wallis test for continuous variables; †We cannot report exact number of cases or proportion if less than five due to Research Ethics Board requirements.