Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Grant Status
Completed
Project Title
Providing Technical Assistance to Expand Palliative Care in New York State Hospitals
Award Amount
$500,000
Location
New York, NY
Website
Date Awarded
August 1, 2009
Currently, 40% of New York State hospitals do not have palliative care programs, and many of the existing programs are underdeveloped and vulnerable to cutbacks. Palliative care programs save an estimated $2,400 per admission by reducing a patient’s length of stay in the costly intensive care unit (ICU). To assist New York hospitals interested in starting and expanding palliative care units, the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) will provide technical assistance free of charge.
Despite its potential to reduce costs and improve quality of care New York State hospitals lag behind in offering palliative care. Patients with advanced illnesses and those at the end of life account for roughly 5–7% of all hospital admissions, but represent 60% of all health care costs. Palliative care programs are a successful strategy for reducing these costs by providing pain and symptom management outside the ICU, and potentially reducing hospital readmissions. CAPC will work with New York State hospitals to establish new palliative care programs and strengthen existing ones. Online and audio conferences will be available for initial training, and further training will be provided through CAPC’s two-day seminars. Trainings at the Advanced Palliative Care Leadership Center will be available to those hospitals with new or established programs. CAPC estimates that this project will offer palliative care to more than 30,000 additional patients and generate more than $80 million in savings per year to hospitals.