Quality indicators for palliative and end of life care: a review of Swedish policy documents

Lind, Susanne,1962-Ersta Sköndal högskola,Karolinska Institutet,Palliativt forskningscentrum, PFC,Karolinska Institutet, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society (author)

Quality indicators for palliative and end of life care : a review of Swedish policy documents

BACKGROUND: All patients with palliative and end of life care needs should be guaranteed equal and safe treatment and care, regardless of their disease or site of care. The inclusion of quality indicators in national guidelines and other guiding documents supports quality assurance and improvement in provision of care. The aim of this paper was to review existing quality indicators in national Swedish policy documents relevant to palliative and end of life care.METHODS: We reviewed existing guidelines for diseases expected to require palliative care issued by the National Board of Health and Welfare, existing regional clinical practice guidelines and the annual report of the Swedish Register of Palliative Care (SRPC) up until 2010.RESULTS: We found 11 quality indicators pertinent to palliative and end of life care in the guidelines for cancer diseases and 'The care and nursing of the elderly'. The indicators included assessment and treatment of pain, communication with the patient and the family, documentation in the patient record and registration in the SRPC. In the national guidelines for cardiology, pulmonary diseases, stroke, diabetes and dementia, there were no indicators relevant for palliative or end of life care.CONCLUSIONS: In the existing Swedish national guidelines for many different diseases, there is still a great need to define clinically relevant and feasible outcome measures of quality of palliative and end of life care.

Adolfsson, JanKarolinska Institutet,Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology (author)
Axelsson, BertilUmeå universitet,Onkologi,FoU unit, Östersunds Hospital, Östersund, Sweden,University of Umeå, Department of Radiation Sciences(Swepub:umu)axbe0003 (author)
Fürst, Carl JohanLund University, Department of Clinical Sciences (author)
Karolinska InstitutetPalliativt forskningscentrum, PFC (creator_code:org_t)

By the author/editor: Lind, Susanne, 1 ...; Adolfsson, Jan; Axelsson, Bertil; Fürst, Carl Joha ...

About the subject

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES: MEDICAL AND HEAL ...; and Clinical Medicin ...; and Cancer and Oncol ...

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES: MEDICAL AND HEAL ...; and Health Sciences; and Health Care Serv ...

By the university: Umeå University; Karolinska Institutet; Marie Cederschiöld högskola

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