End-of-life care in UK care homes: a systematic review of the literature

Spacey, Adam; Scammell, Janet; Board, Michele; Porter, Sam

Abstract

Background
The number of people requiring end-of-life care provision in care homes has grown significantly. There is a need for a systematic examination of individual studies to provide more comprehensive information about contemporary care provision.
Aim
The aim of this study was to systematically review studies that describe end-of-life care in UK care homes.
Method
A systematic PRISMA review of the literature published between 2008 and April 2017 was carried out. A total of 14 studies were included in the review.
Results
A number of areas of concern were identified in the literature in relation to the phases of dying during end-of-life care: end-of-life pre-planning processes; understandings of end-of-life care; and interprofessional end-of-life care provision.
Conclusions
Given that the problems identified in the literature concerning end-of-life care of residents in care homes are similar to those encountered in other healthcare environments, there is logic in considering how generalised solutions that have been proposed could be applied to the specifics of care homes. Further research is necessary to explore how barriers to good end-of-life care can be mitigated, and facilitators strengthened.

Citation

Spacey, A., Scammell, J., Board, M., & Porter, S. (2018). End-of-life care in UK care homes: a systematic review of the literature. Journal of Research in Nursing, 23(2-3), https://doi.org/10.1177/1744987118757839

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Mar 19, 2018
• Deposit Date: Sep 28, 2023
• Journal: Journal of Research in Nursing
• Print ISSN: 1744-9871
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 23
• Issue: 2-3
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1744987118757839