Communication Disparities Contribute to Care Disparities

(Via AJMC) There are disparities in end-of-life (EOL) care decisions and serious illness communication between non-Hispanic White patients and minority patients, echoing the need to increase health care equity, according to a speaker at the 2022 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in June.

End-of-Life Communication
“We probably have the most data when it comes to satisfaction with care, communication, support, pain management, hospitalization, and other utilization and advance care planning,” noted Cardinale B. Smith, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, Division of Hematology/Medical Oncology and Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, New York. Kicking off her presentation, “Racial and Ethnic Disparities in End-of-Life Care,” she started on a positive note: The data are in and we can learn from them.

Unfortunately, even among minority patients—which for her discussion comprised those who identify as African American or Black, Hispanic, and Asian/Pacific Islander—how much is known about the many facets of EOL care varies. Whereas most information on care satisfaction, communication, emotional/spiritual support, pain management, hospitalization at EOL, and advance care planning comes from African American/Black patients, the least is known about Asian/Pacific Islander patients. Continue reading…