Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40420273›Full record

SynthesisBMC palliative care2025

First generation migrants' experiences of terminal illness: a systematic review of diasporic dying.

Tim Sedgley, Joanne Alexander, Liz Forbat

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC palliative care, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing 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

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
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

3 authors.

Tim SedgleyUniversity of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK.
Joanne AlexanderUniversity of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK.
Liz ForbatUniversity of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK. elizabeth.forbat1@stir.ac.uk.

Funding

Marie Curie MC-22-502
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMigration is an established global phenomenon. While many newly arrived migrants have better health than the general population of the country they have moved to, migrants also have their own healthcare needs and face particular issues when diagnosed with a terminal illness. First generation migrants are less likely to have social, financial, and medical supports when faced with a terminal illness. These factors make first generation migrants an important group to understand in order to inform service commissioning and delivery.

methodsThe systematic review was an international qualitative evidence synthesis of English language papers from 2000 to 2023. The primary research question underpinning this novel review was: What are the experiences of first-generation migrants who live with or who are supporting a relative with a terminal illness in the country to which they have moved? Databases (MEDLINE; CINAHL; PsycINFO; SocIndex; Web of Science) were searched in August 2023. Records of 1593 publications were screened, resulting in 39 included papers. CASP was used to inform quality appraisal.

resultsFirst generation migrants struggled with accessing suitable health services and treatments. Structural barriers, such as lack of support for translation/interpreting and for navigating care was visible alongside limited social support networks. Financial precarity ran as a thread through the data, with participants needing to work while unwell, and being unable to return to their country of origin for their own death or to bear witness to the deaths of relatives. First generation migrants experienced caregiving through the lens of difference; maintaining autonomy in the country they would die in, intersected with cultural practices and expectations such as not sharing the prognosis, and mis-matched ideas regarding quality of care provided. The identity of 'migrant' is heterogenous, poorly defined, and may have resulted in identifying studies conducted in the global north.

conclusionsDiasporic dying is not a new phenomenon, yet services and policies fail to meet people's needs. Services urgently need to identify and dismantle structures which uphold and perpetuate inequality, including this population who suffer multiple disadvantages and risks. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION: CRD42023457054.

Indexed as

Attitude to DeathTerminal CareTransients and MigrantsHealth Services AccessibilityHumansQualitative ResearchEqualityMigrantsPalliativeSystematic reviewTerminal

Identifiers

PMID40420273
PMCPMC12107898

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.