Hospice care is promoted as a model for improving end of life care and decreasing burden on caregivers. However, hospice use is low in Latinos and little is known about how Latinos make hospice decisions and experience hospice once enrolled. We used qualitative methods to conduct in-depth interviews and focus groups with 15 Latino bereaved hospice family caregivers and 15 White Non-Latino bereaved hospice family caregivers to describe hospice experiences and evaluate whether cultural factors affected the experience. We identified differences in decision-making and caregiving experience that were influenced by culture. For example, cultural values of denial, secrecy about prognosis and a collective, family-centered system influenced hospice decisions and experience in Latinos but not Non-Latinos. This study identifies a significant dilemma; that is, how to discuss hospice with a patient and family who prefer not to discuss a terminal prognosis. Future research is needed to extend these preliminary results; such results may be useful for designing interventions to improve end of life care and caregiving in Latinos.
Categories:
- Publications in Peer Reviewed Academic Journals
- Focus Groups
- In-Depth Interview
- Thematic Analysis
- Cancer
- Chronic Illness
- Community, Organizational, and Professional Culture
- Determinants of Health
- Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion
- Measuring and Conceptualizing Culture
- Specialty Care