ArticleBMC palliative care2016
Conceptual foundations of a palliative approach: a knowledge synthesis.
Article in BMC palliative care, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 86 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
86 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Nurse Managers' Awareness of and Competence in Palliative Care in Municipal Care Settings: A Systematic Mixed Studies Review.Nursing & health sciences · 2026Pooled it
- End-of-life care for people with severe and persistent mental illness and a life-limiting disease: An umbrella review.European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2025Pooled it
- Using the Palliative Performance Scale to Estimate Survival for Patients at the End of Life: A Systematic Review of the Literature.Journal of palliative medicine · 2018Pooled it
- Resources for Educating, Training, and Mentoring Nurses and Unregulated Nursing Care Providers in Palliative Care: A Review and Expert Consultation.Journal of palliative medicine · 2018Pooled it
- Hope-Based Program for Portuguese Outpatients with Advanced Chronic Illness in a Community Setting: A Randomized Control Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Trial
- Palliative care symptoms, concerns and well-being of older people with frailty and complex care needs upon hospital discharge: a cross-sectional study.BMC palliative care · 2022Trial
- Balancing hope and uncertainty: family perspectives on lung transplantation in cystic fibrosis - a qualitative study.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2026Article
- Article
- A Survey of Canadian Psychiatrists' Attitudes Towards Palliative Care Approaches for Severe and Persistent Mental Illness: Enquête sur les attitudes des psychiatres canadiens à l'égard des approches de soins palliatifs pour les troubles mentaux graves et persistants.Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie · 2026Article
- Identifying individuals who could benefit from a palliative approach to their care using a multi-phase, consultative, iterative approach.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Development and Validation of the End-of-Life Assessment Tool for Advanced Dementia: A Multi Method Study.Journal of advanced nursing · 2026Article
- Strategies used by organizations to scale deep: Lessons from a volunteer navigation intervention.Palliative care and social practice · 2026Article
- Implementation of psycho-existential symptom distress screening among Italian healthcare providers.Palliative & supportive care · 2025Article
- Is Basic Training in Palliative Care Sufficient to Guarantee the Improvement of Knowledge and Skills in This Area?-A Medical Knowledge Assessment Study.Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- A Review on the Management of Symptoms in Patients with Incurable Cancer.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2025Review
- Article
- Impact of the DEDICATED approach to optimizing palliative care for people with dementia: a multi-method study.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Volunteer navigators to support people with life-limiting illness in the community.CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne · 2025Article
- Article
- Person-centred care as an evolving field of research: a scoping review.Frontiers in health services · 2025Review
26 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMuch of what we understand about the design of healthcare systems to support care of the dying comes from our experiences with providing palliative care for dying cancer patients. It is increasingly recognized that in addition to cancer, high quality end of life care should be an integral part of care that is provided for those with other advancing chronic life-limiting conditions. A "palliative approach" has been articulated as one way of conceptualizing this care. However, there is a lack of conceptual clarity regarding the essential characteristics of a palliative approach to care. The goal of this research was to delineate the key characteristics of a palliative approach found in the empiric literature in order to establish conceptual clarity.
methodsWe conducted a knowledge synthesis of empirical peer-reviewed literature. Search terms pertaining to "palliative care" and "chronic life-limiting conditions" were identified. A comprehensive database search of 11 research databases for the intersection of these terms yielded 190,204 documents. A subsequent computer-assisted approach using statistical predictive classification methods was used to identify relevant documents, resulting in a final yield of 91 studies. Narrative synthesis methods and thematic analysis were used to then identify and conceptualize key characteristics of a palliative approach.
resultsThe following three overarching themes were conceptualized to delineate a palliative approach: (1) upstream orientation towards the needs of people who have life-limiting conditions and their families, (2) adaptation of palliative care knowledge and expertise, (3) operationalization of a palliative approach through integration into systems and models of care that do not specialize in palliative care.
conclusionOur findings provide much needed conceptual clarity regarding a palliative approach. Such clarity is of fundamental importance for the development of healthcare systems that facilitate the integration of a palliative approach in the care of people who have chronic life-limiting conditions.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.