Predictors of specialized pediatric palliative care involvement and impact on patterns of end-of-life care in children with cancer: A population-based study.

Abstract

10573 Background: Children with cancer are at risk of receiving high-intensity (HI) care at the end-of-life (EOL) and associated high symptom burden. The impact of palliative care (PC) delivered by generalists or of specialized pediatric palliative care (SPPC) on patterns of EOL care is unknown, with previous studies limited by small sample sizes or low response rates. Methods: Using a provincial registry, we assembled a retrospective cohort of Ontario children with cancer who died between 2000-2012 and who received care through a pediatric institution with a SPPC team and a clinical PC database. Patients were linked to population-based healthcare data capturing inpatient, outpatient, and emergency visits. Clinical PC databases were used to identify patients receiving SPPC. Remaining patients were categorized as having received either general PC (GPC) or no PC depending on the presence of PC associated physician billing or inpatient codes. We determined predictors of SPPC involvement, and whether either SPPC or GPC was associated with HI-EOL outcomes: ICU admission < 30 days from death, mechanical ventilation < 14 days from death, or in hospital death. Sensitivity analyses excluded treatment-related mortality (TRM) cases. Results: 572 patients met inclusion criteria. Children less likely to receive SPPC services included those with hematologic cancers [odds ratio (OR) 0.33, 95th confidence interval (CI) 0.30-0.37; p < 0.001)], in the lowest income quintile (OR 0.44, 95CI 0.23-0.81; p = 0.009), and living at increased distance from the treatment center (OR 0.46, 95CI 0.40-0.52; p < 0.0001). In multivariate analysis, SPPC was associated with a 3-fold decrease in the odds of an EOL ICU admission (OR 0.32, 95CI 0.18-0.57), while GPC had no impact. Similar associations were seen with all other HI-EOL indicators. Excluding TRM had little impact. Conclusions: SPPC, but not GPC, is associated with lower intensity care at EOL. Access to such care however remains uneven. In the absence of randomized trials, these results provide the strongest evidence to date supporting the creation of SPPC teams. These results can be used to support PC advocacy and policy efforts.