Abstract
BackgroundChildren and families in pediatric palliative care depend on close contact with health care personnel, and electronic health (eHealth) is suggested to support care at home by facilitating their remote interactions. ObjectiveThis study aimed to identify and review the use of eHealth to communicate and support home-based pediatric palliative care and appraise the methodological quality of the published research. MethodsWe conducted a convergent, systematic mixed methods review and searched Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (Medline), EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Web of Science, and Scopus for eligible papers. Studies evaluating 2-way communication technology for palliative care for children aged ≤18 years and applying quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods from 2012 to 2018 were eligible for inclusion. Quantitative and qualitative studies were equally valued during the search, screening, extraction, and analysis. Quantitative data were transformed into qualitative data and analyzed using a thematic analysis. Overall, 2 independent researchers methodologically appraised all included studies.ResultsWe identified 1277 citations. Only 7 papers were eligible for review. Evaluating eHealth interventions in pediatric palliative care poses specific methodological and ethical challenges. eHealth to facilitate remote pediatric palliative care was acknowledged both as an intrusion and as a support at home. Reluctance toward eHealth was mainly identified among professionals. ConclusionsThe strengths of the conclusions are limited by the studies’ methodological challenges. Despite the limitless possibilities held by new technologies, research on eHealth in home-based pediatric palliative care is scarce. The affected children and families appeared to hold positive attitudes toward eHealth, although their views were less apparent compared with those of the professionals. Trial RegistrationPROSPERO CRD42018119051; https://tinyurl.com/rtsw5ky
Highlights
BackgroundPediatric palliative care is a heterogeneous field concerning children with various life-threatening or life-shortening conditions from birth until young adulthood [1]
Despite the limitless possibilities held by new technologies, research on electronic health health care personnel (HCP) (eHealth) in home-based pediatric palliative care is scarce
To ensure that home-based pediatric palliative care supported by eHealth is evidence based, we argue that an updated review of evidence published after Bradford et al’s review in 2013 was necessary [6]
Summary
BackgroundPediatric palliative care is a heterogeneous field concerning children with various life-threatening or life-shortening conditions from birth until young adulthood [1]. There is no definite number of children in need of pediatric palliative care. The complexity of the needs of these children and their families makes them dependent on multidisciplinary efforts to manage symptoms and provide psychosocial care and support [1,4]. These children often experience pain related to medical http://www.jmir.org/2020/2/e16248/. Children and families in pediatric palliative care depend on close contact with health care personnel, and electronic health (eHealth) is suggested to support care at home by facilitating their remote interactions
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