When compared to the general population, physicians receive less aggressive care at the end of their lives and are less likely to die in the hospital, according to a study in JAMA.
The study from Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital compared physicians' end-of-life treatment to lawyers and the general population, examining the EHRs of 2,396 deceased physicians, 2,081 lawyers and 665,579 members of the general population. The researchers used information from non-HMO Medicare beneficiaries who died between 2004 and 2011.
Researchers discovered that physicians were less likely to die in the hospital compared with the general population and lawyers (28 percent versus 32 percent and 33 percent, respectively). Physicians were also less likely than the general population to be admitted to the intensive care unit (26 percent versus 28 percent) and less likely to have surgery (25 percent versus 27 percent).
The study authors speculated that physicians received less aggressive care in the end of their lives because of the "knowledge of its burdens and futility as well as the benefits and the financial resources to pay for other treatment options," according to the study.