More than 60 percent of people have had experiences with palliative care, although only 24 percent are "familiar" with what the tern actually means, according to national poll from the Regence Foundation, a nonprofit foundation of health insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield. It's not a surprising conundrum, as many patients and their family members confuse hospice care with palliative care services, even as they are receiving them.
The big difference: Hospice care is only provided at the end of life, while palliative care services are comfort-giving treatments offered at any time during a serious illness. Much like hospice care, however, it is managed by a team of clinicians and counselors, and aims to reduce pain and other manageable symptoms like nausea and fatigue.
What respondent are sure about--a full 81 percent of them--is that they want Medicare to pay for palliative care services, something it rarely does now. And 71 percent believe that services like palliative care, to improve quality of life for acutely ill patients, should be encouraged over efforts to simply extend their life via medical treatments and interventions.
And regulators may finally be willing to listen. Remember, we told you about a study published in this month's Health Affairs magazine indicating that providing palliative care can save big bucks as well. Patients in a four-hospital study who received palliative care services ultimately cost the facilities nearly $7,000 less during their stay.
Read more:
- read the Washington Post article
- check out the Regence Foundation press release
- read the Health Affairs abstract