The primary focus of this literature search is selected articles, etc., on key issues in end-of-life care for which the full text is available online. Added, however, are a few noteworthy articles, etc., but for which access to the full text is available only with a subscription or for a one-time fee for the article in question.1 Also listed are a few postings of special interest on key websites that serve the hospice and palliative care communities-at-large, and selected news media reports. The next listing will be published in approximately four to six weeks.
Articles of particular interest.
Libraries in educational institutions and medical centres may have a subscription to the journal in question and hold a photocopying licence, which may facilitate cost-effective access.
Website Posting of Interest: ‘Distressing lack of access to palliative care highlighted in new data,’ Palliative Care Australia, 23 May 2024
News Media Report of Interest: ‘Patients fare better when they get palliative care sooner, not later,’ Scientific America (U.S.), 14 May 2024
Related:
2.2 ‘Spiritual care[givers] competence in palliative care: A scoping review,’ Healthcare (Portugal). Posted online 22 May 2024. Full text
2.3 ‘Spiritual distress, hopelessness, and depression in palliative care: Simultaneous concept analysis,’ Healthcare (Portugal). Posted online 7 May 2024. Full text
Related:
Website Posting of Interest: ‘End-of-life and palliative care toolkit,’ Royal College of General Practitioners (U.K.), 11 May 2024.
Related:
7.2 ‘Paediatric oncologists’ perspectives on strategic solutions to develop integrated cancer palliative care: Feedback intervention theory as an explanatory framework,’ BMC Palliative Care (India). Posted online 22 May 2024. Full text
7.3 ‘Palliative care PR: Exploring new message strategies,’ Pediatric e-Journal (U.S.). Accessed online 18 May 2024. Full text
Related:
8.2 ‘More support needed for GPs delivering palliative care,’ GP News (Australia). Posted online 17 May 2024. Full text
Website Postings of Interest: ‘Palliative care eases pain and suffering at the end of life, but many are dying without,’ Australian Broadcasting Company (Australia), 24 May 2024; ‘Update to national palliative care standards released,’ Palliative Care Australia, 20 May 2024
Related:
12.2 ‘Standardizing integrated oncology and palliative care across service levels: Challenges in demonstrating effects in a prospective controlled intervention trial,’ Oncology & Therapy (Norway). Posted online 14 May 2024. Full text
Website Postings of Interest: ‘Of course, but: Ethics in palliative practice,’ Centre for Research Ethics & Bioethics Uppsala University (Sweden), 28 May 2024; ‘“Feeling safe and in good hands”: Helping patients and relatives as a palliative care social worker in Norway,’ European Association for Palliative Care, 28 May 2024.
News Media Report of Interest: ‘Hawaii is the first state to cover palliative care services through Medicaid,’ Island News (U.S.), 6 June 2024:
Related:
2.2 ‘Embodiment of pharmacist intervention in palliative care and augmentation of a curriculum for its assessment,’ Journal of Pharmacology & Pharmacotherapeutics (India). Posted online 24 May 2024. Full text
Related:
3.2 ‘The teaching of pediatric palliative care in medical residencies,’ Research Square (Brazil). Posted online 14 May 2024. Full text
N.B. This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal.
Related:
6.2 ‘“So we brought these players together”: A qualitative study of educators’ experiences to analyze the challenges of creating an e-learning program for neuropalliative care,’ BMC Medical Education. Posted online 10 May 2024. Full text
N.B. Contributing authors from Austria, India and the U.S.
Related:
7.2 ‘Priorities for enhancing nurses’ and social workers’ competence and confidence in helping families support dependent children through parental death. A classic-Delphi survey,’ BMC Palliative Care (U.K.). Posted online 17 May 2024. Full text
N.B. SEARCH = Strengths, Emotional management, Attention and awareness, Relationships, Coping, and Habits and goals
Related:
9.2 ‘Online palliative care education and mentorship in Nepal: Project ECHO – a novel approach to improving knowledge and self-efficacy among interprofessional healthcare providers,’ Palliative & Supportive Care. Posted online 13 May 2024. Full text
N.B. Project ECHO website
Website Postings of Interest: ‘Putting the “public” into public health approaches to palliative and end-of-life care,’ Flinders University (Australia), 22 May 2024; ‘Death education to navigate life’s final chapter: Insights for palliative care professionals,’ European Association for Palliative care, 14 May 2024; ‘Bridging the gap: Revolutionising specialist palliative medicine training in rural Australia,’ CareSearch, 13 May 2024.
Related:
Website Posting of Interest: ‘Why should Africans die in pain?’ AllAfrica, 13 May 2024.
News Media Report of Interest: ‘Hospice appeals for funds to buy essential medication,’ Welwyn & Hatfield Times (U.K.). Posted online 4 June 2024
N.B. Contributing authors from Australia, Germany and The Netherlands.
N.B. This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal.
Neuropalliative Care
N.B. Contributing authors from Belgium, The Netherlands and the U.S.
Related:
1.2 ‘“We are not the person we will be when these things happen”: Reflections on personhood from an ethnography of neuropalliative care,’ Nursing Inquiry (Canada). Posted online 5 June 2024. Full text
Grief & Bereavement
Related:
2.2 ‘The impact of voluntary assisted dying on grief and bereavement for family members and carers in the Australian state of Victoria: A qualitative study,’ Health & Social Care in the Community (Australia). Posted online 28 May 2024. Full text
2.3 ‘Grief is a public health issue,’ Canadian Journal of Public Health (Canada). Posted online 10 May 2024. Full text
2.4 ‘The matter of grief, loss and bereavement in families of those living and dying in residential aged care setting: A systematic review,’ Archives of Gerontology & Geriatrics (Australia). Posted online 6 May 2024. Full text
Website Posting of Interest: ‘Largest ever Canadian grief survey results released: Canadians aren’t getting the support they need,’ Canadian Grief Alliance (Canada), 21 May 2024.
News Media Report of Interest: ‘Mourners can now speak to an AI version of the dead. But will that help with grief?’ CTV News (Canada), 4 June 2024.
Palliative Care & Social Practice
Related:
3.2 ‘Voices of unpaid carers: Problems and prospects in accessing palliative care and self-care information, resources and services,’ Palliative Care & Social Practice (Australia). Posted online 29 May 2024. Full text
Care Planning & Serious Illness Conversations
Related:
4.2 “It’s like crystal gazing”: The lived experience of anticipating end-of-life choices in older adults and their close ones,’ The Gerontologist (The Netherlands). Posted online 4 June 2024. Full text (click on pdf icon)
4.3 ‘Implementing the Serious Illness Care Program in safety net health systems: A qualitative study,’ Journal of Pain & Symptom Management (U.S.). Posted online 28 May 2024. Full text
4.4 ‘Let us have the conversation: Serious illness communication in oncology – definitions, barriers, and successful approaches,’ American Society of Clinical Oncology Educational Book (U.S.). Posted online 24 May 2024. Full text
4.5 ‘Perils and payoffs for patients in serious illness conversations as described by physicians: A qualitative study,’ BMJ Open Quality (Sweden). Posted online 23 May 2024. Full text
4.6 ‘What makes advance care planning discussion so difficult? A systematic review of the factors of advance care planning in healthcare settings,’ Palliative & Supportive Care (Hong Kong). Posted online 20 May 2024. Full text
4.7 ‘“Unless someone sees and hears you, how do you know you exist?”: Meanings of confidential conversations – hermeneutic study of the experiences of patients with palliative care needs,’ BMC Nursing (Sweden). Posted online 18 May 2024. Full text
4.8 ‘Use of the supportive and palliative care indicators tool (SPICT™) for end-of-life discussions: A scoping review,’ BMC Palliative Care (Australia). Posted online 16 May 2024. Full text
4.9 ‘Spending analysis of machine learning-based communication nudges in oncology,’ New England Journal of Medicine (U.S.). Posted online 15 May 2024. Full text
4.10 ‘Frequency and barriers to the patient advanced directive and lasting power of attorney: Findings from a prospective observation study in palliative care services,’ Medizinische Klinik – Intensivmedizin und Notfallmedizin (Germany). Posted online 13 May 2024. Full German-language text (w. English language abstract)
4.11 ‘Interventions aiming to improve advance care planning uptake in oncology: A scoping review of recent randomized controlled trials,’ Current Opinion in Oncology (Belgium). Posted online 10 May 2024. Full text
4.12 ‘A mixed-methods comparison of interventions to increase advance care planning,’ Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 2024;37(2)215-227 (U.S.). Full text
Low- & Middle-Income Countries
Related:
5.2 ‘‘Improving person-centred care for older persons with serious multimorbidity in low- and middle-income countries,’ African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine (Africa). Posted online 31 May 2024. Full text
5.3 ‘Health promoting palliative care interventions in African low-income countries: A scoping review,’ BMJ Public Health (Africa). Posted online 27 May 2024. Full text
5.4 ‘Psychosocial and palliative care in African national cancer control plans: A qualitative study,’ Psycho-Oncology (Africa). Posted online 14 May 2024. Full text
N.B. Contributing authors from Canada, Kenya, Nigeria and the U.S.
Community & Home-Based Palliative Care
Related:
6.2 ‘Palliative (farewell) culture in shared housing arrangements: The perspective of everyday nursing practice,’ Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie (Germany). Posted online 4 June 2024. Full text
6.3 ‘The experiences of grandparents involved in the home-based end-of-life care of their grandchild with cancer: A qualitative secondary data analysis,’ Death Studies (Denmark). Posted online 31 May 2024. Full text
6.4 ‘The role of hospice tours in promoting hospice enrollment: A study of Taiwanese family members,’ Sage Open (Taiwan). Posted online 31 May 2024. Full text
6.5 ‘Care First-Fund Later (CareFFuL): An end-of-life home care quality improvement project,’ BMJ Open Quality (U.K.). Posted online 30 May 2024. Full text
6.6 ‘Constructing a world for compassion: How temporal work can preserve compassion in extreme contexts,’ Journal of Management Studies (Canada). Posted online 24 May 2024. Full text
6.7 ‘Accessibility, relevance, and impact of a symptom monitoring tool for home hospice care: Theory elaboration and qualitative assessment,’ JMIR Human Factors (U.S.). Posted online 23 May 2024. Full text
6.8 ‘What keeps the family caregiver motivated to care for their dying relative at home? A brief report of a qualitative interview study,’ Palliative Medicine Reports (Germany). Posted online 15 May 2024. Full text
6.9 ‘End-of-life care at home: The role of critical care transfer services,’ Journal of Intensive Care Society, 2024;25(2):231-236 (U.K.). Full text
Place of Care & Death
Related:
7.2 ‘Place of death among children from 0 to 17 years of age: A population-based study from Sweden,’ Acta Pædiatrica. Posted online 31 May 2024. Full text
7.3 ‘Prevalence of preferences for end-of-life place of care and death among patients with cancer in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis,’ JCO Global Oncology. Posted online 30 May 2024. Full text
N.B. Contributing authors from Australia, Ghana, and the U.K.
Prognosis
Related:
8.2 ‘Time estimates in prognostic discussions: A conversation analytic study of hospice multidisciplinary team meetings,’ Palliative Medicine (U.K.). Posted online 20 May 2024. Full text
Technology
Related:
9.2 ‘End-of-life care patient information leaflets: A comparative evaluation of artificial intelligence-generated content for readability, sentiment, accuracy, completeness, and suitability – ChatGPT vs Google Gemini,’ Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine (India). Posted online 31 May 2024. Full text (click on pdf icon)
9.3 ‘Views of patients with progressive illness and carers about the role of digital advance care planning systems to record and share information: A qualitative study,’ Palliative Medicine (U.K.) Posted online 30 May 2024. Full text
9.4 ‘Healthcare personnel’s perspectives on health technology in home-based pediatric palliative care: A qualitative study,’ BMC Palliative Care (Norway). Posted online 29 May 2024. Full text
9.5 ‘Complexities of artificial intelligence in healthcare,’ BC Medical Journal (Canada). Posted online 27 May 2024. Full text
9.6 ‘Enhancing palliative care triage: Decision support system for patient prioritisation,’ Journal of Decision Systems (Ireland). Posted online 21 May 2024. Full text
Website Posting of Interest: ‘Digital transformations addressing critical gaps in palliative and end-of-life care,’ Caring Futures Institute, Flinders University (Australia), 22 May 2024.
Aged, Long-Term & Residential Care
Related:
10.2 ‘The role of companionship in palliative care in older adults: A scoping review,’ Medical Journal of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences (Iran). Posted online 29 May 2024. Full text in English and Persian
10.3 ‘Preparing nurses for palliative care in long-term care: An integrative review,’ Journal of Professional Nursing (U.S.). Posted online 28 May 2024. Abstract (w. introduction, section snippets, references, etc)
10.4 ‘The use of person-centered outcome measures to support integrated palliative care for older people: A systematic review,’ Journal of American Medical Directors Association (U.K.). Posted online 23 May 2024. Full text
10.5 ‘Nurse practitioner care, scope of practice and end-of-life outcomes for nursing home residents with dementia,’ JAMA Health Forum (U.S.). Posted online 10 May 2024. Full text
Website Posting of Interest: ‘Improving living and dying in long-term care homes,’ eHospice (Canada), 1 June 2024. English language text; French language text
Oncology
Related:
11.2 ‘Transformative peer connections: Early experiences from the ASCO palliative care community of practice,’ American Society of Clinical Oncology Educational Book (U.S.). Posted online 21 May 2024. Full text
11.3 ‘Palliative care for patients with cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology – guideline update,’ Journal of Clinical Oncology (U.S.). Posted online 15 May 2024. Full text
11.4 ‘Palliative care for patients with cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology guideline clinical insights,’ Journal of Clinical Oncology. Posted online 15 May 2024. Full text
COVID-19
Related:
12.2 ‘The palliative care experience in Irish nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: A survey of residents, family, and staff,’ BMC Palliative Care (Ireland). Posted online 22 May 2024. Full text
12.3 ‘Racial and ethnic disparities in serious illness conversation quality during the COVID-19 pandemic,’ Journal of Pain & Symptom Management (U.S.). Posted online 22 May 2024. Abstract (w. introduction, section snippets, references, etc)
12.4 ‘Pandemic narratives in stories about hospice palliative care: The impact of COVID-19 upon ideals of timely, holistic care and quality of life,’ SSM – Qualitative Research in Health (U.K.). Posted online 19 May 2024. Full text
Disaster Preparedness & Humanitarian Crises
Related:
13.2 ‘Trauma-informed palliative care for humanitarian crises,’ Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research & Practice. Posted online 14 May 2024. Full text
N.B. Contributing authors from Canada, Jamaica, Turkey, the U.K., and the U.S.
13.3 ‘Geriatric aspects of the organization of medical and social, palliative and hospice care in wartime: A combination of medical, psychological and social problems,’ Clinical & Preventive Medicine (Ukraine). Posted online 8 May 2024. English Language Abstract (click on pdf icon for full Ukrainian text)
Assisted Death Practices
Related:
14.2 ‘Ethical perspectives regarding euthanasia, including in the context of adult psychiatry: A qualitative interview study among healthcare workers in Belgium,’ BMC Medical Ethics. Posted online 21 May 2024. Full text
14.3 ‘Developing a survey to measure nursing students’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs, influences, and willingness to be involved in medical assistance in dying (MAiD): A mixed method modified e-Delphi study,’ BMC Nursing (Canada). Posted online 14 May 2024. Full text
14.4 ‘Between voluntary assisted dying, suicide and advance care planning in Huntington’s disease,’ Australasian Journal of Neuroscience (Australia & New Zealand), 2024;34(1):8-27. Full text
N.B. See special issue of ‘Literature Search’ on assisted dying practices
Pediatric Palliative Care
N.B. This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal.
Related:
15.2 ‘Parents, grandparents and siblings: A pilot psychological intervention study in pediatric palliative care,’ Contemporary Family Therapy (Portugal). Posted online 18 May 2024. Full text
15.3 ‘Diversity, equity, inclusion: Words matter,’ Pediatric e-Journal (U.S.). Accessed online 18 May 2024. Full text
15.4 ‘Principles of pediatric palliative surgical oncology: A guide to palliative care for pediatric surgeons,’ Annals of Surgery (U.S.). Posted online 8 May 2024. Full text (click on pdf icon)
Website Posting of Interest: ‘New tool to help parents and health professionals with “unfathomably difficult” paediatric palliative care decisions,’ Palliative Care New South Wales (Australia), 22 May 2024.
End-of-Life Care for Immigrant Patients
Cultural & Linguistic Diversity
Related:
17.2 ‘Australian indigenous people and treatment decision-making at end of life,’ Alternative Law Journal (Australia). Posted online 10 May 2024. Full text
Website Postings of Interest: ‘Providing culturally sensitive palliative care to children with cancer,’ The ASCO Post (U.S.), 16 May 2024; ‘Exploratory study from an end-of-life research partnership network to improve access for ethnically diverse communities in one region,’ University of Bedfordshire (U.K.). Accessed online 11 May 2024. Full text (click on ‘Download’ icon)
Socioeconomic Status
Hospice Architecture
Critical Care Medicine
Related:
20.2 ‘Semiotics of ICU physicians’ views on end-of-life care and quality of dying in a critical care setting: A qualitative study,’ Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine. Accessed online 13 May 2024. Full text
HIV/AIDS
North America
N.B. ‘End-of-Life Care Behind Bars’ (Canada), 17 May 2024.
Australia
Europe