PhD Scientific Days 2022

Mental Health Sciences II. (Poster discussion will take place in the Aula during the Coffee Break)

Effective integration of hospice palliative care into oncology

Text of the abstract

Introduction
Hospice care has been accessible nationwide since 1991 in Hungary. However, less than a third of indigent patients receive this form of specialized care. The average duration of hospice care is only 24.2 days, although the ideal duration would be 8.5 months.
Aims
In this statement, we would like to introduce the Palliative Mobil Team (PMT), a new form of treatment proving that the early integration of palliative care can be made efficiently attainable throughout the current Hungarian healthcare systems.
Methods
Since September 2019, the National Institute of Oncology PMT has been helping the patients of the Institute receive optimal care through consultation. This presentation shows the results of the Team’s work, by analyzing patient flow data from the first three years of operation (2019-2021).
In 2019 we provided care for 26 patients, in 2020 for 88, and in 2021 for 305.
In 2019 we took care of patients for 19.4 days, which increased up to an average of 60.3 days in 2021. These numbers are considerably higher than the nationwide average (24.2 days).
In an internal medicine department, an average of 5.63 patients die per month. This number decreased to 1.6 patients after PMT was introduced. The results were mainly due to the fact that patients served by the Palliative Mobile Team spent their last days either at home, or at a hospice care facility which could cater for their specialized needs.
In the past two years we have reached that all units of the National Institute of Oncology have referred patients to the PMT.
Results
As the Palliative Mobil Team works in a consultative form, it can form the patient’s path while physicians do not feel that they lose control over the patient’s treatment. Equally, patients do not develop anxieties about giving up their cure.
Conclusion
Studies have proved that involving hospice-palliative care early in the treatment process improves the patients’ quality of life, along with the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the treatment. To capitalize on these gains, it is necessary to make specialized palliative care available for patients who need it, throughout the healthcare system. Our example proves that leveraging existing financial and human resources, through education and shifting attitude, makes the improvement of palliative care in Hungary possible.