ObjectiveIn the United States, approximately 20% patients die annually during a hospitalization with an intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Each year, critical care costs exceed $82 billion, accounting for 13% of all inpatient hospital costs. Treatment of sepsis is listed as the most expensive condition in US hospitals, costing more than $20 billion annually. Electronic Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (eMOLST) is a standardized documentation process used in New York State to convey patients’ wishes regarding cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other life-sustaining treatments. No study to date has looked at the effect of eMOLST as an advance care planning tool on ICU and hospital costs using estimates of direct costs. The objective of our study was to investigate whether signing of eMOLST results in any reduction in length of stay and direct costs for a community-based hospital in New York State.MethodA retrospective chart review was conducted between July 2016 and July 2017. Primary outcome measures included length of hospital stay, ICU length of stay, total direct costs, and ICU costs. Inclusion criteria were patients ≥65 years of age and admitted into the ICU with a diagnosis of sepsis. An independent samples t test was used to test for significant differences between those who had or had not completed the eMOLST form.ResultThere were no statistical differences for patients who completed or did not complete the eMOLST form on hospital's total direct cost, ICU cost, total length of hospital stay, and total hours spent in the ICU.Significance of resultsCompleting an eMOLST form did not have any effect on reducing total direct cost, ICU cost, total length of hospital stay, and total hours spent in the ICU.

patients on these medications endure exacerbating side effects and complications. Additionally, due to opioid tolerance, or reduced responsiveness, 10-fold increases in opioid doses are common in chronic pain management (2). This rapid increase in dosages is problematic due to the narrow therapeutic range of opioids and their high-risk side effects, such as nausea/vomiting, constipation, sedation, drowsiness, and neurological effects such as neuroexcitation, myoclonus, and urinary retention (3,4). The need for non-opioid treatment options for patients undergoing acute, chronic and obstinate pain is of great importance; one alternative is low-dose ketamine (LDK) infusion.

Background: Bony metastases are often seen in advanced cancers and lead to deterioration in patient quality of life with common complications of pain, bone fractures, and hypercalcemia. While most sites of metastasis to bone are observed in the axial skeleton from patients with a primary lung, breast or prostate cancer, metastases to the calvarium from lung cancer are less common, and thus less likely to be identified and managed.Case Description: A 69-year-old Caucasian female with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) presented with worsening symptoms of widespread body pain, fatigue, and weight loss. Physical examination was remarkable for a palpable protrusion on the patient's head. Imaging revealed a parieto-occipital calvarial lesion, a likely metastasis from her lung cancer. A previously performed CT-guided lung biopsy was evaluated for actionable tumor markers to allow for more specific and efficacious line of treatments; the patient's tumor had lacked any notable gene mutations. The treatment plan included radiotherapy, combined immunotherapy and chemotherapy consisting of pembrolizumab, pemetrexed, and carboplatin. Despite the treatment, the patient's skull lesion had continued to grow, and her overall condition deteriorated to the point where she required hospice.Conclusions: Given the unique location of calvarial metastases, early detection appears to correlate with improving patient outcomes and quality of life. A multimodal approach with a high index of suspicion is essential for diagnosing and managing rare presentations of metastatic disease.

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