The Effect of the Timing of a Hospice Referral and the Perceived Quality of Care by the Family

Late referrals to hospice can result in less time for the hospice team to perform assessments, establish relationships, and initiate goals. This secondary analysis addresses the effects of the length of stay of a hospice patient and the level of satisfaction reported by their caregivers after the passing of their loved one. The hypothesis of the study is that there is a direct relationship between a family\u27s perception of the value of hospice and the length of stay of their terminally ill loved one. The setting for this secondary analysis was a non-profit hospice in the piedmont of North Carolina. Results from a family evaluation of hospice care survey were obtained from a six month period and were grouped based on length of stay. Two groups were utilized to separate length of stay: less than 30 days were considered short term and greater than 30 days were considered timely. Overall, satisfaction percentage levels offered no statistical significance for either group. Therefore, it is concluded that more data needs to be collected from longer periods of time in order to determine effects of length of stay on family satisfaction with hospice care