abstract: Palliative Care Consultation Service and Palliative Care Unit: Why Do We Need Both?

Background. Palliative care (PC) infrastructure has developed differently around the globe. Whereas some institutions consider the palliative care unit (PCU) a valuable component, others report that the sole provision of a state-of-the art palliative care consultation service (PCCS) suffices to adequately care for the severely ill and dying.

Objective. To aid institutional planning, this study aimed at gathering patient data to distinguish assignments of a concomitantly run PCU and PCCS at a large hospital and academic medical center.

Conclusion. This study presents a direct comparison between patients in a PCU and a PCCS. Results strongly support the hypothesis that the coexistence of both institutions in one hospital contributes to the goal of ensuring optimal high-quality PC for patients in complex and challenging clinical situations.

"Limitations

Though this is the first study providing the information discussed
above, some limitations have to be considered.

1. Satisfaction of the PC team with patient care is a surrogate
measure. We were unable to provide patient-reported outcomes,
which should be the gold standard when assessing
the quality of PC services [41]. Moreover, the validity of a
one-item five-point grading scale is considerably restricted,
and the findings may be influenced by other circumstances
such as a lack of confidence in the PCCS team outside their
own institution. ....."