Functional Status Changes in Patients Receiving Palliative Care Consult During COVID-19 Pandemic.

Context: Hospitalized patients with functional impairment have higher symptom burden and mortality. Little is known about how increased patient volume and acuity during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected access to palliative care among patients with functional impairment.

Objectives: To examine changes in functional status and hospital outcomes among patients receiving inpatient palliative care consultation before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Palliative Radiation Oncology Consult Service Reduces Total Costs During Hospitalization.

Context: Palliative radiation therapy (PRT) is a highly effective treatment in alleviating symptoms from bone metastases; however, currently used standard fractionation schedules can lead to costly care, especially when patients are treated in an inpatient setting. The Palliative Radiation Oncology Consult (PROC) service was developed in 2013 to improve appropriateness, timeliness, and care value from PRT.

Objectives: Our primary objective was to compare total costs among two cohorts of inpatients with bone metastases treated with PRT before, or after, PROC establishment.

A brief educational intervention is effective in teaching the femoral nerve block procedure to first-year emergency medicine residents.

Background: Hip fractures are a painful condition commonly encountered in the emergency department (ED). Older adults in pain often receive suboptimal doses of analgesics, particularly in crowded EDs. Nerve blocks have been utilized by anesthesiologists to help control pain from hip fractures postoperatively.