Content and Spiritual Items of Quality-of-Life Instruments Appropriate for Use in Palliative Care: A Review

Abstract Despite the importance of palliative care and quality of life (QoL) as an outcome measure, little research evaluated the QoL instruments that are used in end-of-life situations. We evaluated the content of and domains measured by QoL instruments that are suitable for use in palliative care...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of pain and symptom management 2010-08, Vol.40 (2), p.290-300
Main Authors: Albers, Gwenda, MSc, Echteld, Michael A., PhD, de Vet, Henrica C.W., PhD, Onwuteaka-Philipsen, Bregje D., PhD, van der Linden, Mecheline H.M., PhD, Deliens, Luc, PhD
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anesthesia & Perioperative Care
Biological and medical sciences
end of life
End of life decisions
Humans
instruments
Meaning
Medical sciences
Pain Medicine
Palliative care
Palliative Care - psychology
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Quality of life
Quality of Life - psychology
Spirituality
Surveys and Questionnaires
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Abstract Despite the importance of palliative care and quality of life (QoL) as an outcome measure, little research evaluated the QoL instruments that are used in end-of-life situations. We evaluated the content of and domains measured by QoL instruments that are suitable for use in palliative care and how the domain of spirituality was operationalized in these instruments. We conducted two literature reviews. One identified the domains that are most important for the QoL of incurably ill patients and resulted in a framework of QoL domains. The other review identified 29 instruments measuring (at least one domain of) QoL that are appropriate for use in palliative care. Most of the instruments covered only one or two QoL domains, and none of the instruments covered all QoL domains included in the framework. Among the 29 instruments, 15 included items on spirituality. We also categorized the spirituality items contained in the instruments into the spirituality aspects in the framework. Most spirituality items concerned the meaning or purpose of life. This study provides information about the domains included in QoL instruments that are suitable for use in palliative care and provides insights into the differences in content, which can be helpful when choosing an instrument for use in palliative care.
ISSN:0885-3924
1873-6513
DOI:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2009.12.012