1. The roles, responsibilities and practices of healthcare assistants in out-of-hours community palliative care: A systematic scoping review.
- Author
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Fee, Anne, Muldrew, Deborah, Slater, Paul, Payne, Sheila, McIlfatrick, Sonja, McConnell, Tracey, Finlay, Dori-Anne, and Hasson, Felicity
- Subjects
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CINAHL database , *COMMUNITY health services , *HOME care services , *MEDICAL information storage & retrieval systems , *PSYCHOLOGY information storage & retrieval systems , *MEDICAL care , *MEDICAL needs assessment , *MEDICAL personnel , *MEDLINE , *PALLIATIVE treatment , *PATIENT monitoring , *PATIENTS , *SELF-evaluation , *SYSTEMATIC reviews , *LITERATURE reviews , *OCCUPATIONAL roles , *SOCIAL support , *PATIENTS' families , *UNLICENSED medical personnel - Abstract
Background: Access to community palliative care 'out-of-hours' – defined as care provided after the normal hours of work – is advocated globally. Healthcare assistants, who provide care under the direction of a qualified professional, are increasingly employed to help deliver such care, yet there is a little understanding regarding their role, responsibilities or contribution. Aim: The aim of this study was to identify the roles, responsibilities and contributions of healthcare assistants in out-of-hours community palliative care. Design: Scoping review Data sources: Five bibliographic databases (CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and Scopus) and grey literature were searched using a predefined search strategy. The review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews statement. Results: The search yielded six papers using quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods. Results highlighted a lack of recognition of the role and contribution of healthcare assistants. A concurrent theme was that healthcare assistants continually monitored and responded to patient's and family's physical and emotional needs; there was also self-reported evidence indicating patient and family benefit, such as maintaining a sense of normality and support to remain at home. Discussion: This review highlighted a dearth of evidence relating to the healthcare assistant role in out-of-hours palliative care. Limited evidence suggests they play a role, but that it is hidden and undervalued. Such invisibility will have a significant impact on the planning and delivery of out-of-hours palliative care. Future research is needed on role development for the benefit of patients and caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2020
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