Community access to palliative care medicines – patient and professional experience: systematic review and narrative synthesis
2021

Community Access to Palliative Care Medicines: Patient and Professional Experience

Sample size: 10 publication Evidence: low

Author Information

Author(s): Ogi Mizue, Natasha Campling, Jakki Birtwistle, Alison Richardson, Michael I Bennett, Miriam Santer, Susan Latter

Primary Institution: University of Southampton

Hypothesis

How do diverse community-based palliative care models influence medicine access?

Conclusion

Further research is needed to identify which models facilitate rapid and efficient access to medicines for community-based palliative care patients.

Supporting Evidence

  • Community pharmacy access was often delayed due to stock issues.
  • Hospice emergency medication kits were found to reduce access time for medicines.
  • Few large-scale studies exist to draw firm conclusions about access experiences.

Takeaway

This study looked at how patients and healthcare workers experience getting medicines for palliative care at home, finding that there are often delays and challenges.

Methodology

A systematic review and narrative synthesis of studies on medicine access experiences in community-based palliative care.

Potential Biases

Many studies relied on self-reports from health professionals, which may introduce bias.

Limitations

Most studies had small, local samples and lacked comprehensive data on outcomes.

Participant Demographics

Studies included patients and healthcare professionals from economically developed countries.

Statistical Information

P-Value

0.002

Statistical Significance

p=0.002

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1136/bmjspcare-2020-002761

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