Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36131339›Full record

ArticleBMC medicine2022

Longitudinal patterns and predictors of healthcare utilization among cancer patients on home-based palliative care in Singapore: a group-based multi-trajectory analysis.

Qingyuan Zhuang, Poh-Heng Chong, Whee Sze Ong, Zhi Zheng Yeo, Cherylyn Qun Zhen Foo, Su Yan Yap, Guozhang Lee, Grace Meijuan Yang, Sungwon Yoon

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medicine, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Qingyuan ZhuangDivision of Supportive and Palliative Care, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Drive, Singapore, 169610, Singapore. zhuang.qingyuan@singhealth.com.sg.ORCID 0000-0001-8770-9968
Poh-Heng ChongHCA Hospice, Singapore, Singapore.
Whee Sze OngDivision of Clinical Trials and Epidemiological Sciences, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
Zhi Zheng YeoHCA Hospice, Singapore, Singapore.
Cherylyn Qun Zhen FooDivision of Supportive and Palliative Care, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Drive, Singapore, 169610, Singapore.
Su Yan YapPalliative Care Services, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Changi General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
Guozhang LeeDepartment of Internal Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
Grace Meijuan YangDivision of Supportive and Palliative Care, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 11 Hospital Drive, Singapore, 169610, Singapore.
Sungwon YoonHealth Services and Systems Research, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHome-based palliative care (HPC) is considered to moderate the problem of rising healthcare utilization of cancer patients at end-of-life. Reports however suggest a proportion of HPC patients continue to experience high care intensity. Little is known about differential trajectories of healthcare utilization in patients on HPC. Thus, we aimed to uncover the heterogeneity of healthcare utilization trajectories in HPC patients and identify predictors of each utilization pattern.

methodsThis is a cohort study of adult cancer patients referred by Singapore Health Services to HCA Hospice Service who died between 1st January 2018 and 31st March 2020. We used patient-level data to capture predisposing, enabling, and need factors for healthcare utilization. Group-based multi-trajectory modelling was applied to identify trajectories for healthcare utilization based on the composite outcome of emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalization, and outpatient visits.

resultsA total of 1572 cancer patients received HPC (median age, 71 years; interquartile range, 62-80 years; 51.1% female). We found three distinct trajectory groups: group 1 (31.9% of cohort) with persistently low frequencies of healthcare utilization, group 2 (44.1%) with persistently high frequencies, and group 3 (24.0%) that begin with moderate frequencies, which dropped over the next 9 months before increasing in the last 3 months. Predisposing (age, advance care plan completion, and care preferences), enabling (no medical subsidy, primary decision maker), and need factors (cancer type, comorbidity burden and performance status) were significantly associated with group membership. High symptom needs increased ED visits and hospitalizations in all three groups (ED visits, group 1-3: incidence rate ratio [IRR] 1.74-6.85; hospitalizations, group 1-3: IRR 1.69-6.60). High home visit intensity reduced outpatient visits in all three groups (group 1-3 IRR 0.54-0.84), while it contributed to reduction of ED visits (IRR 0.40; 95% CI 0.25-0.62) and hospitalizations (IRR 0.37; 95% CI 0.24-0.58) in group 2.

conclusionsThis study on HPC patients highlights three healthcare utilization trajectories with implications for targeted interventions. Future efforts could include improving advance care plan completion, supporting care preferences in the community, proactive interventions among symptomatic high-risk patients, and stratification of home visit intensity.

Indexed as

NeoplasmsPalliative CareAdultAgedCohort StudiesEmergency Service, HospitalFemaleHospitalizationHumansMalePatient Acceptance of Health CareRetrospective StudiesSingaporeEnd-of-lifeHealthcare utilizationHome-based palliative careOncologyTrajectory analyses

Identifiers

PMID36131339
PMCPMC9494890

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.