Polypharmacy in Hospice and Palliative Care

Angela Yeh; Amy Z Sun; Helen Chernicoff

doi:10.1016/j.cger.2022.05.009

Polypharmacy in Hospice and Palliative Care

Clin Geriatr Med. 2022 Nov;38(4):693-704. doi: 10.1016/j.cger.2022.05.009. Epub 2022 Sep 13.

Authors

Angela Yeh¹, Amy Z Sun², Helen Chernicoff²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, University of California, Los Angeles, 757 Westwood Plaza, Suite 7501, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Department of Internal Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine Program, University of California, Los Angeles, 757 Westwood Plaza, Suite 7501, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. Electronic address: ayeh@mednet.ucla.edu.
² Combined Geriatrics and Palliative Care, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, University of California, Los Angeles, 757 Westwood Plaza, Suite 7501, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Combined Geriatrics and Palliative Care, Department of Internal Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine Program, University of California, Los Angeles, 757 Westwood Plaza, Suite 7501, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.

PMID: 36210085
DOI: 10.1016/j.cger.2022.05.009

Abstract

In patients with limited life expectancy, or if the clinician would not be surprised if the patient were to die within a year, reconsidering the treatment targets and engaging in an open discussion with the patient on their goals of care would be appropriate. When a desire to deprescribe has been reached by both clinician and patient, a stepwise and guided approach to deprescribing with regular follow-ups is recommended. This article discusses common medications that can be deprescribed in the palliative/hospice patients and provides toolkits for future reference.

Keywords: Goals of care; Hospice; Palliative care; Time-until-benefit; Treatment target.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Deprescriptions*
Hospice Care*
Hospices*
Humans
Life Expectancy
Palliative Care
Polypharmacy