Corresponding Author: Robert Y. Lee, MD, MS, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence, Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington, 325 9th Ave, Campus Box 359762, Seattle, WA 98104 (rlee06@uw.edu).
Accepted for Publication: January 20, 2020.
Published Online: February 16, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.22523
Author Contributions: Drs Lee and Kross had full access to all of the data in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Concept and design: Lee, Brumback, Sathitratanacheewin, Lober, Engelberg, Curtis, Kross.
Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data: Lee, Brumback, Sathitratanacheewin, Modes, Lynch, Ambrose, Sibley, Vranas, Sullivan, Engelberg, Curtis, Kross.
Drafting of the manuscript: Lee, Sathitratanacheewin, Engelberg.
Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: All authors.
Statistical analysis: Lee, Sathitratanacheewin, Engelberg.
Obtained funding: Lee, Sathitratanacheewin, Curtis.
Administrative, technical, or material support: Sathitratanacheewin, Lober, Modes, Lynch, Sibley, Engelberg.
Supervision: Brumback, Curtis, Kross.
Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Lee reported receiving grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr Brumback reported receiving grants from the NIH. Dr Sathitratanacheewin reported receiving a grant from the Prince Mahidol Youth Program Award. Dr Modes reported receiving grants from the NIH. Dr Lynch reported receiving grants from the NIH. Dr Vranas reported receiving grants from the NIH, the Oregon Health & Science University Medical Research Foundation, and the Collins Medical Trust. Dr Sullivan reported receiving grants from the NIH, the Oregon Health & Science University Medical Research Foundation, the American Lung Association, the American Thoracic Society, the Borchard Foundation, and the Knight Cancer Institute. Dr Engelberg reported receiving grants from the NIH, the Cambia Health Foundation (funding from which supports Drs Brumback and Lober and Mr Sibley), the National Palliative Care Research Center, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Stupski Foundation, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Dr Curtis reported receiving grants from the NIH, the Cambia Health Foundation (funding from which supports Drs Brumback and Lober and Mr Sibley), and the National Palliative Care Research Center. Dr Kross reported receiving grants from the NIH, the American Lung Association, and the American Thoracic Society. No other disclosures were reported.
Funding/Support: This study was supported by the National Institutes of Health, Cambia Health Foundation, and UW Medicine. Dr Lee was supported by an F32 award (HL142211) and a K12 award in implementation science (HL137940); Drs Lee and Modes, by a palliative care T32 training fellowship (HL125195); and Drs Modes and Lynch, by a pulmonary/critical care T32 training fellowship (HL007287), all from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Dr Sathitratanacheewin was supported by the Prince Mahidol Youth Program Award, Bangkok, Thailand. Dr Vranas was supported by a K12 award (HL133115) jointly funded by the NHLBI and the National Institute of Mental Health. Infrastructure and chart abstraction support was provided by the University of Washington Institute of Translational Health Sciences (ITHS), which is funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences through the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) Program (UL1 TR002319).
Role of the Funder/Sponsor: The National Institutes of Health, Cambia Health Foundation, and UW Medicine had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.
Meeting Presentation: Presented at the Society of Critical Care Medicine 49th Critical Care Congress; February 16, 2020; Orlando, Florida.
Additional Contributions: We acknowledge Lauren Bartlett, BS, Michael Donahue, BS, and Barbara Burke, BS (ITHS), as well as Ross Burnside (Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence), for their assistance in digitizing POLST orders. The investigators provided financial compensation via a standard contract for research coordination support services to ITHS for Ms Bartlett, Mr Donahue, and Ms Burke’s work. Mr Burnside received no financial compensation for his contributions.
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