Table 5 Content of patient discussions derived from informative descriptions
|  | Total N = 248 | More than three months before death or end of follow-up N = 53 | Less than three months before death or end of follow-up N = 139 | After death N = 56 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Discussion concerned: | ||||
 Past situation | 51 (21%) | – | – | 51 (91%) |
 Current situation | 181 (73%) | 48 (91%) | 127 (91%) | 6 (11%) |
 Future situation | 28 (11%) | 8 (15%) | 18 (13%) | 2 (4%) |
Content of discussed situation: | ||||
 Problems | 134 (54%) | 37 (70%) | 91 (66%) | 6 (11%) |
 Treatment (options) | 70 (28%) | 19 (36%) | 39 (28%) | 12 (21%) |
 Wishes of patient/family | 61 (25%) | 16 (30%) | 35 (25%) | 10 (18%) |
 Evaluation of care | 51 (21%) | – | – | 51 (91%) |
Domain of discussed situation: | ||||
 Physical | 103 (42%) | 29 (55%) | 62 (45%) | 12 (21%) |
 Psychological | 45 (18%) | 10 (19%) | 30 (22%) | 5 (9%) |
 Social | 59 (24%) | 12 (23%) | 34 (25%) | 13 (23%) |
 Existential | 31 (13%) | 7 (13%) | 21 (15%) | 3 (5%) |
 Practical | 44 (18%) | 14 (26%) | 21 (15%) | 9 (16%) |
 Healthcare provider – patient relationship | 10 (4%) | 3 (6%) | 7 (5%) | – |