Outcomes in 56 patients who died. Values are numbers (percentages) unless stated otherwise
| Outcomes | Intervention group | Control group | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patients | 29 (19) | 27 (17) | 0.75 |
| Median (interquartile range) age (years) | 85 (84-89) | 84 (81-87) | 0.06 |
| Men | 17 (59) | 13 (48) | 0.43 |
| Completed advance care planning | 25 (86)* | 0 (0) | <0.001 |
| Wishes known and followed | 25 (86) | 8 (30) | <0.001 |
| Wishes unknown | 3 (10) | 17 (63) | <0.001 |
| Wishes known but not followed | 1 (3) | 2 (7) | 0.51 |
| Location of death: | 0.09 (overall) | ||
| Acute hospital but not intensive care unit | 16 (55) | 12 (44) | 0.42 |
| Intensive care unit | 0 (0) | 4 (15) | 0.03 |
| Home or non-acute hospital | 6 (21) | 8 (30) | 0.19 |
| Palliative care | 7 (24) | 3 (11) | 0.20 |
| End of life decision making: | |||
| None—died suddenly | 6 (21) | 6 (23) | 0.02 |
| Involved in decision making | 17 (58) | 10 (37) | |
| Not involved in decision making | 6 (21) | 11 (30) | |
| Impact of events scale: | |||
| Median (interquartile range) score | 5 (2-5.5) | 15 (5-21) | <0.001 |
| Score >30† | 0 (0) | 4 (15) | 0.03 |
| Hospital anxiety and depression scale: | |||
| Median (interquartile range) depression | 0 (0-1.5) | 5 (0-9) | <0.001 |
| Score >8‡ | 0 (0) | 8 (30) | 0.002 |
| Median (interquartile range) anxiety | 0 (0-3.5) | 3 (0-6) | 0.03 |
| Score >8‡ | 0 (0) | 5 (19) | 0.02 |
| Satisfaction with quality of death | |||
| Family member§¶: | |||
| Very satisfied | 24 (83) | 13 (48) | 0.02 |
| Satisfied | 2 (7) | 8 (30) | |
| Not satisfied | 3 (10) | 6 (22) | |
| Family member’s perception of patient’s satisfaction**: | |||
| Very satisfied | 25 (86) | 10 (37) | <0.001 |
| Satisfied | 1 (4) | 10 (37) | |
| Not satisfied | 3 (10) | 7 (26) | |
*Discussion, no wishes (n=3); advance care planning discussion card only (n=8); documented advance care plan (n=14).
†High risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder.
‡Clinically significant depression or anxiety.
§Nominated by patient at enrolment to study.
¶Question posed: How satisfied are you about the way in which x died?
**Question posed: Thinking about it from x’s perspective, how satisfied are you that x died in the way that he/she would have wanted to?