Describing the pediatric resident experience in caring for dying patients.

Abstract

51 Background: Cancer remains the leading cause of childhood death beyond infancy. Though growing subspecialty palliative care provides expertise in caring for dying children, all pediatricians encounter dying patients and should feel adequately prepared to participate in their care. Clinicians who feel insufficiently trained in communication or end-of-life care are more likely to distance themselves from seriously ill patients and report higher levels of distress and burnout. Pediatric residents are often responsible for the frontline care of dying children in the hospital and yet, most pediatric residencies lack a formal end-of-life curriculum. Here, we aim to understand the experience of pediatric residents caring for dying patients. Methods: A thirty-four item survey instrument was administered to residents in a large pediatric residency program at a tertiary care center at Rising Junior Orientation and Rising Senior Orientation in spring 2018. All residents present completed the survey. Results: Seventy-six residents completed surveys including 46 rising juniors and 30 rising seniors. Only 19 residents (25%) reported receiving any training in caring for dying children; most of which was by noon/morning conferences or informal teaching. Nearly all (70/74; 95%) residents felt that their training in caring for dying children was not sufficient. A majority of residents reported minimal to no comfort with discussion of goals of care (73%) or resuscitation status (69%), managing pain (76%), anxiety (79%), and dyspnea (80%) at the end-of-life, performing a death exam (81%), and reaching out to families after the death of a child (85%). A majority of residents anticipate continuing to care for dying children after residency (50/76; 66%). Conclusions: Pediatric residents are uncomfortable with caring for dying patients and receive minimal training, suggesting that end-of-life care is a large gap in the pediatric residency training experience.