142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Planning Ahead: How Much Do Older Adults Know about Palliative Care?

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Monday, November 17, 2014

Lusine Nahapetyan, PhD , Kinesiology and Health Studies, Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond, LA
Pamela Orpinas, PhD , Health Promotion and Behavior, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Anne P. Glass, PhD , Institute of Gerontology, College of Public Health, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Background: Over the past decade, palliative care has expanded in the U.S., helping to address the fragmented healthcare model for serious illnesses, as it can be  started earlier in the disease process. Little is known about how much older adults in the general population know about palliative care (PC). The objectives of this study were: 1) to examine the level of PC knowledge in older adults and 2) compare PC knowledge to hospice knowledge.

Methods: The sample included 154 community-dwelling older adults in Southern U.S. (mean age 67±7.8; 69% females; 95% White). We developed a 7 item PC knowledge scale with true/false/don’t know response categories. We used analyses of variance and Wilcoxon signed rank tests for analyses.

 Results: Significantly more participants scored zero on PC than hospice knowledge scales (20.1% vs. 3.6%; z=-4.4, p<0.001).   The lower responses were in knowledge about PC difference from hospice (53% correct), PC provision with curative treatment in contrast to hospice (43% correct), and PC appropriateness at any age and stage of serious illness (60% correct). Participants with low PC knowledge were more likely to be in fair health (F=3.05, p=0.02), less educated (F=9.2, p<0.001), and lower income (F=4.5, p=0.006). There were no significant age, gender, or marital status differences in PC knowledge.

Conclusion: Older adults reported less knowledge of PC than hospice. Educational programs are needed to increase PC knowledge in older adults, particularly those with poor health, lower education and income, to increase informed decision-making before they are faced with a terminal illness.

Learning Areas:

Advocacy for health and health education
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health or related education
Public health or related nursing
Public health or related public policy
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Assess the level of palliative care knowledge in older adults. Examine the associations of palliative care knowledge with demographic characteristics. Compare palliative care knowledge to hospice knowledge in older adults.

Keyword(s): End-of-Life Care, Aging

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: My main research interests in health promotion are in aging and end-of-life care. I have conducted research in this area for past 5 years. I co-author two peer-reviewed articles examining end-of-life care discussions in older adults and hospice development in Asia. The contents of this abstract represent a subset of my dissertation study. All study activities were approved by University of Georgia IRB.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4270.0: Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care