The earlier the better: the role of palliative care consultation on aggressive end of life care, hospice utilization, and advance care planning documentation among gynecologic oncology patients

Purpose To evaluate the role of specialty palliative care consultation (PCC) on end of life care outcomes among terminally ill gynecologic oncology patients. Methods Retrospective chart review of currently deceased gynecologic oncology patients seen at a single, academic institution between October 2006 and October 2016. Clinical characteristics and outcomes were examined using descriptive statistics and logistic regression. Results Two hundred and four patients were eligible. Forty-one percent underwent at least one marker of aggressive care at the end of life. Most (53%) had a PCC prior to death, and of these most were inpatient (89%). Patients with a PCC had higher odds of hospice enrollment before death (OR 2.55, p = 0.016) and higher odds of advance care planning documentation before death (OR 6.79, p =