| Outcomes | No of Participants (studies) Follow up | Quality of the evidence (GRADE) | Relative effect (95% CI) | Anticipated absolute effects | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Risk with usual care | Risk difference with Community palliative care (95% CI) | ||||
|
Quality of life Quality of life at end of life scale. Scale from: 21 to 105. |
414 (2 studies) 3-4 months |
⊕⊕⊕⊝ MODERATEa due to inconsistency | - | - |
The mean quality of life in the intervention groups was 0.25 lower (1.03 lower to 0.53 higher) |
|
Quality of life Functional assessment of chronic illness therapy spiritual well-being scale. Scale from: 0 to 184. |
426 (2 studies) 3-4 months |
⊕⊕⊕⊝ MODERATEb due to imprecision | - | - |
The mean quality of life in the intervention groups was 4.63 higher (1.53 to 7.73 higher) |
| Patient satisfaction overall satisfaction rating. Scale from: 1 to 10. |
38 (1 study) 4 months |
⊕⊕⊝⊝ LOWc due to risk of bias | - | - |
The mean patient satisfaction in the intervention groups was 1.4 higher (0.69 to 2.11 higher) |
|
Patient satisfaction FAMCARE patient satisfaction with care scale. Scale from: 16 to 80. |
274 (1 study) 4 months |
⊕⊕⊕⊝ MODERATEb due to imprecision | - | - |
The mean patient satisfaction in the intervention groups was 6 higher (3.94 to 8.06 higher) |
| Relatives satisfaction overall satisfaction rating. Scale from: 1 to 10. |
33 (1 study) 4 months |
⊕⊝⊝⊝ due to risk of bias, imprecision | - | - |
The mean relatives satisfaction in the intervention groups was 1.6 higher (0.19 to 3.01 higher) |
| Death at home |
109 (1 study) |
⊕⊝⊝⊝ due to risk of bias, imprecision | RR 1.14 (0.79 to 1.65) | Moderate | |
| 475 per 1000 |
66 more per 1000 (from 100 fewer to 309 more) | ||||
|
Length of stay rate of hospital days |
109 (1 study) |
⊕⊝⊝⊝ due to risk of bias, imprecision | RR 0.73 (0.41 to 1.3) | Moderate | |
| - | |||||
|
ED visits rate of ED visits |
109 (1 study) |
⊕⊝⊝⊝ due to risk of bias, imprecision | RR 0.73 (0.45 to 1.19) | Moderate | |
| - | |||||
|
Readmissions No. of patients readmitted within 28 days |
84 (1 study) |
⊕⊕⊝⊝ LOWb due to imprecision | RR 0.72 (0.34 to 1.52) | Moderate | |
| 293 per 1000 |
82 fewer per 1000 (from 193 fewer to 152 more) | ||||
|
Admissions No. of patients admitted within 84 days |
84 (1 study) |
⊕⊕⊕⊝ MODERATEb due to imprecision | RR 0.53 (0.33 to 0.88) | Moderate | |
| 610 per 1000 |
287 fewer per 1000 (from 73 fewer to 409 more) | ||||
|
Quality of life Chronic heart failure questionnaire (higher score is better) |
84 (1 study) |
⊕⊕⊝⊝ due to risk of bias, imprecision | - | - |
The mean quality of life in the intervention group was 0.79 higher (0.23 to 1.25 higher) |
Heterogeneity, I2=50%, p=0.04, unexplained by subgroup analysis.
Downgraded by 1 increment if the confidence interval crossed 1 MID or by 2 increments if the confidence interval crossed both MIDs.
Downgraded by 1 increment if the majority of the evidence was at high risk of bias, and downgraded by 2 increments if the majority of the evidence was at very high risk of bias.
From: Chapter 14, Community palliative care
NCBI Bookshelf. A service of the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.