Improving efficacy, efficiency and economics of hospice individualized drug therapy

Abstract

The rising cost of drug therapy coupled with late referrals and decreasing length of stay is a prescription for financial woes in the capitated hospice health care arena. The drive to provide the best symptom management in endof-life care and still maintain a fiscally sound bottom line highlights a need for examination of the ways that hospices assess individual patient drug therapy and factors that influence drug choices. Performing an individualized drug therapy evaluation promotes effective, efficient, and economical care.