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Studying end-of-life
care relying solely on administrative data to measure symptoms
or to understand all of the factors contributing to patterns of
end-of-life care is unlikely to be successful. Administrative
data can contribute to our knowledge, can aid program planning,
and can help focus future studies, but such data will always be
somewhat limited in their scope. The utility of the data can be
increased through careful analysis, and, as appropriate, using
other data to augment administrative sources. Administrative data
can ultimately serve to improve our understanding of end-of-life
care on a population basis.
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