Health IT Analytics: Prediction System Significantly Increases Palliative Care Consults

Researchers at Penn Medicine have developed a new predictive analytics tool that can help increase the number of palliative care consultations for seriously ill individuals, leading to improved quality of life for patients and their families. Palliative care is specialized medical care that focuses on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of a serious illness, researchers explained in a study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. “There’s widespread recognition of the need to improve the quality of palliative care for seriously ill patients, and palliative care consultation has been associated with improved outcomes for these patients,” said the study’s lead author, Katherine Courtright, MD, an assistant professor of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care, and Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Read more at HealthITAnalytics, EurekAlert