<P> Many physicians are slow to refer to hospice care , waiting until they are absolutely certain of a terminal prognosis . Some physicians believe that the patient must have a six - month prognosis or less to receive hospice care , while others are overly optimistic in their assessment of prognosis , presuming treatment will be more effective than it is . As a result , the majority of patients are referred to hospice in the very end - stages of their diseases , or choose that time to seek hospice care . The average length of stay in hospice before a patient dies was 26 days in 1994 and 19 days in 1998 . Although the length of average stays has since increased , the term of care continues to be underused . In 2004 the average stay was 57 days and the median length was 22 days . 33 % of hospice patients admitted in 2004 died within seven days of admission . </P>
what is the average time in hospice care
57 days