- Submission Status: Close
- Submission from: 2024-03-11
- Submission deadline: 2024-03-15
Advances in medicine and improvements in care have led to longer life expectancies, resulting in an aging population and increased pressure on the healthcare system. The field of end-of-life care is facing new challenges as the number of people living to older ages and the complexity of chronic and debilitating diseases continue to rise at a rapid pace. According to the recent OECD report Time for Better Care at the End of Life, close to 7 million people needed end-of-life care in the OECD countries prior to the Covid-19 Pandemic and over 10 million people will need end-of-life care by 2050. A valuable approach to identify and understand gaps in high-quality, person-centered support for individuals nearing the end of their lives is to measure and investigate regional and provider variation.
We invite researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders to submit their contributions to our Call for Papers on the topic of Regional and Provider Variation in End-of-life Care. For this collection, we take the OECD approach to end-of-life-care, which understands it as the care provided to people who are in the last 12 months of life, including the terminal stage of palliative care. This interdisciplinary inquiry aims to explore various aspects related to the provision, accessibility, and quality of care in different geographical regions.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
• Palliative care : Enhancing understanding and implementation of palliative care, including pain management, symptom control, psychosocial support, spiritual care, and the integration of palliative care into various healthcare settings.
• Morbidity-related challenges: Examining the challenges and complexities associated with providing end-of-life care for individuals with specific or multiple chronic conditions and the challenges of providing care across specialties
• Pain Management: Focusing on advancements in pain assessment and treatment approaches for individuals at the end of life, including pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions, integration of pain management into palliative care, and addressing barriers to effective pain relief.
• End-of-Life Care for Children: : Examining the unique challenges and considerations involved in providing end-of-life care for pediatric patients, including pain management, family support, and ethical considerations specific to pediatric end-of-life care.
• Urgent care and emergency interventions: Investigating the challenges and opportunities associated with urgent and emergency care at the end of life, exploring strategies to improve timely and appropriate interventions in critical situations.
• Best practices in patient-centered end-of-life care: Examining successful strategies and innovative approaches that enhance the quality of care and support for individuals and their families during the end-of-life journey.
• Health care spending in end-of-life care: Investigating the economic aspects of end-of-life care, including resource utilization, cost-effectiveness, financial implications, and potential ways for optimizing resource allocation.
• Equity and Diversity in End-of-Life Care: Investigating the disparities in access to and quality of end-of-life care among diverse populations, including racial and ethnic minorities, socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, and marginalized communities. Exploring strategies to promote equity and culturally sensitive care.
• Advance Care Planning: Exploring the processes, barriers, and outcomes related to advance care planning, including discussions on treatment preferences, goals of care, and end-of-life decision-making that match the life values of the patients.
• Ethical and legal considerations: Addressing the ethical dilemmas and legal frameworks surrounding end-of-life care, including decision-making processes, advance care planning, patient autonomy, and the role of healthcare professionals.
• Medical assistance in dying (MAID): Analyzing the complex ethical, legal, and social dimensions of medically assisted dying practices, exploring regional variations in legislation, public opinion, and their impact on end-of-life care.
• Workforce and training: Exploring the impact of workforce on the delivery of end-of-life care, identifying strategies to address staffing gaps, and examining the training needs of different healthcare professionals involved in end-of-life care.
• Informal caregivers: Understanding the roles, experiences, and needs of informal caregivers providing support to individuals at the end of life, exploring interventions to enhance their well-being and the quality of care they provide.
We encourage researchers to utilize population-based data to shed light on the need for and provision of palliative and end-of-life care. The examination of regional populations and their demographic, socioeconomic, ethnic characteristics as well as the available healthcare services will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of regional variations in end-of-life care.
Submissions should present original research, theoretical frameworks, case studies, policy analyses, or systematic reviews that contribute to the understanding of end-of-life care. We also welcome interdisciplinary perspectives that incorporate insights from healthcare, social sciences, ethics, law, economics, and other relevant disciplines. Check here all article categories that we accept
Accepted papers will be published in a special collection of our journal dedicated to advancing knowledge and promoting evidence-based practices in end-of-life care. This Call for Papers provides a platform for researchers and practitioners to share their expertise, exchange ideas, and contribute to the development of policies and interventions that ensure compassionate, equitable, and high-quality end-of-life care across different regions.
Submission Deadline: May 30, 2024
We look forward to receiving your submissions and collectively advancing our understanding of regional variation in end-of-life care to improve the experiences and outcomes for individuals and families during this critical phase of life. There are no publishing fees for authors.
