Home › Research › End-of-life care
Dying with Dementia: Is Hospice the Answer?
Lauren J. Hunt. Innovation in Aging, 2025-12-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Abstract 1 in 3 older adults die with or from dementia. The final years of life for older adults with dementia is characterized by high symptom burden, functional decline, and high costs. Hospice is the standard of care for terminally ill individuals and is known to improve end-of-life care quality and reduce costs. In recent years, hospice use has grown dramatically for older adults with dementia, who now comprise 50% of the 1.7 million hospice enrollees annually. Yet hospice was designed to address the needs of cancer patients. Additionally, the rapid growth of older adults with dementia in hospice is intertwined with increasing concerns around misuse of the Medicare Hospice Benefit. This lecture will review the history and current trends in hospice use for older adults with dementia and discuss the role of hospice and alternative care models in addressing end-of-life care needs for people with dementia and their families.
Key findings
- Hospice is the standard of care for terminally ill individuals and is known to improve end-of-life care quality and reduce costs.
- In recent years, hospice use has grown dramatically for older adults with dementia, who now comprise 50% of the 1.7 million hospice enrollees annually.
- Yet hospice was designed to address the needs of cancer patients.
- Additionally, the rapid growth of older adults with dementia in hospice is intertwined with increasing concerns around misuse of the Medicare Hospice Benefit.
- This lecture will review the history and current trends in hospice use for older adults with dementia and discuss the role of hospice and alternative care models in addressing end-of-life care needs for people with dementia and their families.
Why it matters
This lecture reviews the history and current trends of hospice use for older adults with dementia, who now make up 50% of the 1.7 million hospice enrollees annually, even though hospice was designed for cancer patients. It discusses concerns about misuse of the Medicare Hospice Benefit and the role of hospice and alternative care models in end-of-life care.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 28/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Innovation in Aging) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Innovation in Aging: journal h-index 48 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 0 / 6 | Cited 0.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author Lauren J. Hunt: h-index 15 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, San Francisco: institution h-index 1,915 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 28 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Hunt, L. J. (2025). Dying with Dementia: Is Hospice the Answer? Innovation in Aging. https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igaf122.1107
Vancouver
Hunt LJ. Dying with Dementia: Is Hospice the Answer? Innovation in Aging. 2025. doi:10.1093/geroni/igaf122.1107.
BibTeX
@article{hunt2025-8df070f2,
author = {Hunt, Lauren J.},
title = {{Dying with Dementia: Is Hospice the Answer?}},
journal = {Innovation in Aging},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1093/geroni/igaf122.1107},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igaf122.1107}
}