ArticlePalliative medicine2024
Barriers and facilitators influencing referral and access to palliative care for children and young people with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions: a scoping review of the evidence.
Article in Palliative medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The Current State of Palliative Care Research for Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Thematic Analysis of Empirical Literature.Psycho-oncology · 2025Pooled it
- Pediatric Palliative Care Utilization Following Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest at a Large US Quaternary Hospital.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Communication Barriers and Facilitators to Specialist Pediatric Palliative Care Involvement in Pediatric Oncology Settings Across Canada.Psycho-oncology · 2026Article
- A descriptive analysis of hospital-based palliative care services: a case study from Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital, Uganda.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Nurses' Experiences with Spiritual Care in Paediatric Palliative Care: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- A call for equity-informed pediatric palliative care in Canada.Paediatrics & child health · 2026Article
- Shifting the narrative: reframing paediatric palliative care to enable earlier engagement.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Review
- A qualitative study exploring the pros and cons of universal pediatric palliative care referral at diagnosis for children with cancer.Palliative & supportive care · 2026Article
- Beyond the Label: How Naming and Framing Impact Pediatric Palliative Care Acceptance.Journal of pain and symptom management · 2026Article
- Unpacking Multi-Layered Challenges in Palliative Care Transitions: A Descriptive Qualitative Study of Multidisciplinary Teams in China.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2026Article
- Types of Challenges and Barriers in Accessing Paediatric Palliative Care in Romania: A Qualitative Study Based on Focus Groups Guided by a Semi-Structured Discussion Guide.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Article
- Bereaved parents' perspectives of factors influencing decision-making about place of end-of-life care for children with life-limiting, life-threatening conditions: an all-Ireland qualitative study.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- What do pediatric transplant physicians think about palliative care? Results from a national survey study.Bone marrow transplantation · 2025Article
- Exploring pediatric palliative care in Luxembourg: a mixed-methods study.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- Healthcare professionals' perspectives of providing end-of-life care for infants, children and young people in acute settings: A multi-site qualitative study.Palliative medicine · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPalliative care is an essential component of children's health services but is accessed by fewer children than could potentially benefit.
aimAppraise the evidence to identify factors influencing referral and access to children's palliative care, and interventions to reduce barriers and improve referrals.
designScoping review following the six stages of the Arksey and O'Malley framework. Data were charted using an adapted version of the socioecological framework. DATA SOURCES: CINAHL, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Cochrane Library were searched for primary studies of any design and literature/systematic reviews. Studies reporting barriers/facilitators and interventions in relation to referral of children with a life-limiting condition to palliative care, in any setting, were included.
resultsOne hundred ninety five articles (primary qualitative and quantitative studies, reviews) were retained (153 reporting barriers/facilitators; 40 interventions; 2 both). Multiple factors were identified as barriers/facilitators: Individual level: underlying diagnosis, prognostic uncertainty, parental attitudes, staff understanding/beliefs; Interpersonal level: family support, patient-provider relationships, interdisciplinary communication; Organisational level: referral protocols, workforce, leadership; Community level: cultural norms, community resources, geography; Society level: policies and legislation, national education, economic environment, medication availability. Most of these factors were bi-directional in terms of influence. Interventions (
conclusionBarriers/facilitators to paediatric palliative care referral are well described. Interventions are less well described and often unevaluated. Multi-modal approaches incorporating stakeholders from all levels of the socioecological framework are required to improve paediatric palliative care referral and access.
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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.