ArticlePalliative medicine2020
The roles, responsibilities and practices of healthcare assistants in out-of-hours community palliative care: A systematic scoping review.
Article in Palliative medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Primary palliative care in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and thematic synthesis of the evidence for models and outcomes.Palliative medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Understanding workplace peer support among healthcare assistants providing palliative and end-of-life care at home: A realist review.Palliative medicine · 2026Review
- Article
- Article
- Health care assistants in out of hours community palliative care: multiple qualitative organisational case studies.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Workplace support, wellbeing and intention to leave among lone working healthcare assistants providing palliative and end-of-life care in the community: A mixed methods study.Palliative medicine · 2026Article
- Exploring the core characteristics of competence in healthcare assistants: a scoping review protocol.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Understanding peer support among healthcare assistants delivering hospice care at home: a protocol for a realist review.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Nurse assistants' perception of caring for older persons who are dying in their own home : An interview study.BMC palliative care · 2024Article
- POMSNAME: an aide-mémoire to improve the assessment and documentation of palliative care - a longitudinal project.BMC palliative care · 2023Article
- 'That just doesn't feel right at times' - lone working practices, support and educational needs of newly employed Healthcare Assistants providing 24/7 palliative care in the community: A qualitative interview study.Palliative medicine · 2023Article
- Health service improvement using positive patient feedback: Systematic scoping review.PloS one · 2023Article
- Protocol for a mixed methods exploratory investigation into the role and contribution of the healthcare assistant in out-of-hours palliative care.BMC nursing · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAccess to community palliative care 'out-of-hours' - defined as care provided after the normal hours of work - is advocated globally. Healthcare assistants, who provide care under the direction of a qualified professional, are increasingly employed to help deliver such care, yet there is a little understanding regarding their role, responsibilities or contribution.
aimThe aim of this study was to identify the roles, responsibilities and contributions of healthcare assistants in out-of-hours community palliative care.
designScoping review. DATA SOURCES: Five bibliographic databases (CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and Scopus) and grey literature were searched using a predefined search strategy. The review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews statement.
resultsThe search yielded six papers using quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods. Results highlighted a lack of recognition of the role and contribution of healthcare assistants. A concurrent theme was that healthcare assistants continually monitored and responded to patient's and family's physical and emotional needs; there was also self-reported evidence indicating patient and family benefit, such as maintaining a sense of normality and support to remain at home. DISCUSSION: This review highlighted a dearth of evidence relating to the healthcare assistant role in out-of-hours palliative care. Limited evidence suggests they play a role, but that it is hidden and undervalued. Such invisibility will have a significant impact on the planning and delivery of out-of-hours palliative care. Future research is needed on role development for the benefit of patients and caregivers.
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