Healthy days at home and prognosis of older adults with cancer and non-cancer serious life-limiting illnesses

Healthy days at home and prognosis of older adults with cancer and non-cancer serious life-limiting illnesses
BMC Geriatrics; by Oluwaseun J. Adeyemi, Nina Siman, Allison M. Cuthel, Keith S. Goldfeld, Corita R. Grudzen; 7/25
Approximately 75% of U.S. older adults with serious life limiting illnesses visit the emergency department (ED) in the last six months of life, with three quarters of these individuals being admitted to the hospital. In this context, Healthy Days at Home (HDaH) and prognosis have emerged as important concepts for assessing and guiding care among older adults with serious life-limiting illnesses. HDaH is a patient-centered outcome measure that captures the number of days individuals spend at home without hospitalizations or ED visits. Among US older adults with serious life-limiting illnesses, worse prognosis is associated with fewer HDaH. Increasing age is associated with fewer HDaH, with substantial variability by race/ethnicity. In contrast, cancer is associated with more HDaH.
Assistant Editor's note: "Healthy Days at Home (HDaH)" is such a fabulous concept, and so in keeping with the intent and goals of palliative care. Perhaps HDaH is a quality measure that palliative care providers might consider implementing.