Factors Associated With Utilization of an Inpatient Palliative Care Consultation Service in an Urban Public Hospital

RATIONALE: To evaluate factors associated with palliative care consultation (PCC) in an urban public hospital. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of patients who died on inpatient medical services. RESULTS: Patients with a PCC were more likely to have a "do not resuscitate" (DNR) order at the time of death (p<0.001) and had a decreased likelihood of death in the ICU (p<0.001). Factors associated with PCC in a multivariate analysis included: cancer diagnosis (p=0.01), at least a high school education (p=0.04), older age (p=.003), and birth outside the US (p=0.03). CONCLUSION: The increased PCC utilization for immigrants is in contrast to previously reported literature. This increased use may be because access to services in a municipal hospital is not driven by demographic and socioeconomic factors.