The Division of Comfort and Palliative Care at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles believes all children facing a serious illness—whether it is terminal or not—should be able to benefit from palliative care, particularly in the comfort of their own home. Unfortunately, enrolling patients in home-based care has been challenging due to the complex nature of the government policies that make these services available. As a result, many patients aren’t matched with the best program based on their condition, and some who are eligible for home-based care do not receive it at all.
A grant from TCRF will help launch The Division of Comfort and Palliative Care at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles’ research-based quality improvement effort centered on improving the enrollment process. The goal for this “Improving Access to Home-Based Care” project is to gain a better understanding of the key differences among patients—including socio-demographic and disease-related factors—and how that can determine which program they should be enrolled in.