Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39984918›Full record

ArticleBMC medical education2025

Development and evaluation of an online training program for palliative care in India.

Varun Raj Passi, Sreedevi Warrier, Rajalekshmi Balu, M M Sunil Kumar, Parth Sharma

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medical education, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Varun Raj Passi *Association for Socially Applicable Research (ASAR), Pune, Maharashtra, India.
Sreedevi Warrier *Pallium India, Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
Rajalekshmi BaluPallium India, Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
M M Sunil KumarPallium India, Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
Parth SharmaAssociation for Socially Applicable Research (ASAR), Pune, Maharashtra, India. parth.sharma25@gmail.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPalliative care training at the undergraduate level is poor in India. With the need for palliative care rising in India and globally, it is possible to train physicians in resource-limited settings in palliative care via online training programs owing to ease of access and convenience. However, there is limited evidence available from India on the development and implementation of such a training program. This study aims to describe the development of an online training program offered by the Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences (TIPS), Kerala, and the impact of the program on the confidence of physicians in managing various palliative care needs of their patients.

methodsThe course was developed by an interdisciplinary expert team from TIPS. The course content was made keeping in mind the local sociocultural factors in India and was peer-reviewed by two external experts. The program was started in 2018 and updated and revised over the years. Currently, the program has 20 sessions, each lasting for 90 min. The course content was disseminated using project-ECHO's (Extension of Community Health Outcomes) telementoring model. To assess the impact of the training program, self-reported change in confidence from twenty-two batches of physicians, trained from January 2020 to August 2023. Feedback from participants was also assessed to identify areas of improvement in the training program.

resultsA total of 1159 physicians were trained during the study period. At the end of the course, 51.2% of the participants completed the evaluation survey and had a statistically significant (p < 0.05) improvement in confidence in pain, gastrointestinal symptoms and breathlessness management, morphine prescription, and psychosocial communication. The duration of each session and the entire course was reported to be ideal by 88.6% and 87.9% of participants, respectively.

conclusionOur results show that online training can be effectively used to build confidence in physicians in managing various palliative care needs.

trial registrationNot applicable.

Indexed as

Education, DistancePalliative CareClinical CompetenceCurriculumFemaleHumansIndiaMaleProgram DevelopmentProgram EvaluationDistance educationIndiaPain managementPalliative careTerminal care

Identifiers

PMID39984918
PMCPMC11846357

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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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.