Room to Improve: An Audit of In-Hospital End-of-Life Care for Oncology Patients in a Tertiary Cancer Centre in Ireland During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
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| Title: | Room to Improve: An Audit of In-Hospital End-of-Life Care for Oncology Patients in a Tertiary Cancer Centre in Ireland During the COVID-19 Pandemic. |
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| Authors: | Carroll, Hailey K.1 (AUTHOR), Broderick, Aoife1 (AUTHOR), McCarthy, Orfhlaith1,2 (AUTHOR), Bambury, Richard M.1,3 (AUTHOR), Power, Derek G.1,3 (AUTHOR), Collins, Dearbhaile C.1,3 (AUTHOR), Connolly, Roisin M.1,3 (AUTHOR), Noonan, Sinead A.1,3 (AUTHOR), Collins, Dan1 (AUTHOR), Cunningham, Elaine1,2 (AUTHOR), Kennedy, Mary1,2 (AUTHOR), O'Driscoll, Kieron1 (AUTHOR), Nuzum, Daniel1,2 (AUTHOR), Twomey, Katie1 (AUTHOR), O'Riordan, Aideen1 (AUTHOR), O'Sullivan, Finola1 (AUTHOR), Roe, Claire1 (AUTHOR), Lowney, Aoife C.1,2 (AUTHOR), O'Leary, Mary Jane1,2 (AUTHOR) drmjoleary@marymount.ie, O'Reilly, Seamus1,3 (AUTHOR) seamus.oreilly@hse.ie |
| Source: | Omega: Journal of Death & Dying. Feb2026, Vol. 92 Issue 3, p1153-1168. 16p. |
| Subject Terms: | *Documentation, *Retrospective studies, *Decision making, *Communication, *COVID-19 pandemic, Mortality risk factors, Auditing, Attitudes toward death, Medical protocols, Medical quality control, Research funding, Palliative treatment, Do-not-resuscitate orders, Patient-family relations, Tertiary care, Oncology, Cancer patients, Medical records, Acquisition of data, Spiritual care (Medical care), Terminal care, Quality assurance, Individualized medicine, Hospital wards, Health care teams |
| Geographic Terms: | Ireland |
| Abstract: | The COVID-19 pandemic compounded isolation for patients through social distancing measures and staff shortages. We were concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on the quality of care provided at end-of-life in 2021 in a national cancer centre, and instigated the first ever review of the care of the dying. Quality of care was assessed retrospectively using a validated instrument developed by the United Kingdom's National Quality Board. Sixty-six patient deaths occurred in our cancer centre in 2021. The 'risk of dying' was documented in 65.2% of records. Palliative care services were involved in 77%, and pastoral care in 10.6%. What was important to the patient was documented in 24.2%. The 'quality-of-death' score was satisfactory for most but poor in 21.2%. Our study prompted change, including appointment of an end-of-life coordinator, development of a checklist to ensure comprehensive communication, expansion of the end-of-life committee to include junior doctors, and regular audit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Omega: Journal of Death & Dying is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Education Research Complete |
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| Abstract: | The COVID-19 pandemic compounded isolation for patients through social distancing measures and staff shortages. We were concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on the quality of care provided at end-of-life in 2021 in a national cancer centre, and instigated the first ever review of the care of the dying. Quality of care was assessed retrospectively using a validated instrument developed by the United Kingdom's National Quality Board. Sixty-six patient deaths occurred in our cancer centre in 2021. The 'risk of dying' was documented in 65.2% of records. Palliative care services were involved in 77%, and pastoral care in 10.6%. What was important to the patient was documented in 24.2%. The 'quality-of-death' score was satisfactory for most but poor in 21.2%. Our study prompted change, including appointment of an end-of-life coordinator, development of a checklist to ensure comprehensive communication, expansion of the end-of-life committee to include junior doctors, and regular audit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 00302228 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/00302228231196620 |
