For Hospice Care, a Pressing Need to Ensure Quality for Patients and Families

In the last of four blog posts on the challenges of advancing healthcare quality, members of AHRQ’s National Advisory Council highlight that little is known about the current quality of hospice care and how it varies across hospice programs. The authors assert that, as the population ages and older Americans continue to rely on hospice for their end-of-life care, there needs to be a call to action across all federal healthcare agencies, ensuring patients and their loved ones receive the quality of care they need. While hospice care outcome measures should not be overly complex, they must be actionable, applicable, and meaningful to patients and caregivers. Access the blog post, as well as a previous overview blog by AHRQ Director Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., M.H.S.A.