1) PurposeThe need for hospice palliative care continues to grow as the number of deaths from cancer increases with increasing interest in and need for the management of end stage cancer patients. We conducted this study to determine differences in quantity and cost of drugs used by end-stage cancer patients who were hospitalized in general wards or hospice wards for 7 days before death.2) MethodsAmong patients who died in the hospice ward or the general ward of a university hospital in a metropolitan city (Seoul) from January 2016 to September 2019, patients aged over 18 years with a hospital stay of 8 days or more were selected. A total of 526 patients were selected, including 290 from hospice wards and 236 from general wards.3) ResultsNumbers of PO, injections, and fluid, but not opioids, used in the hospice ward were significantly lower than those in the general ward. Cost of PO, injections, fluid, and total costs were significantly lower in the hospice ward than in the general ward. In the case of opioids, the cost was higher for the hospice ward. Total costs including all drug costs in the hospice ward were significantly lower than those in the general ward. 4) ConclusionCaring for people with terminal cancer in a hospice can lower costs and increase satisfaction for dying patients. Reducing the proportion of patients caring for terminal cancer in general wards and increasing access to hospice services can address health insurance deficits and exhaustion.
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