The 'surprise' question may improve the accuracy of GPs in identifying death in patients with advanced stage IV solid-cell cancer

Commentary on: Moroni M, Zocchi D, Bolognesi D, et al.; on behalf of the SUQ-P group. The ‘surprise’ question in advanced cancer patients: a prospective study among general practitioners. Palliat Med 2014;28:,959–64. Context The ‘surprise’ question has been developed in order to improve the ability of clinicians to identify patients who are at risk of dying in the near future. The question, ‘Would I be surprised if this patient died in the next year?’ shifts the focus away from precise identification of dying patients to identifying patients who might be dying.1 This may enable more patients to receive timely assessment and planning for their supportive care needs. Methods This is a single-group prospective cohort study aimed at determining the accuracy of the ‘surprise’ question in identifying patients at risk of death. The population examined was patients with stage IV solid-cell cancers cared for...
Source: Evidence-Based Medicine - Category: Internal Medicine Authors: Tags: EBM Prognosis, Pancreas and biliary tract, Palliative care, Epidemiologic studies, General practice / family medicine, Stroke, Prostate Source Type: research