Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Feb 2013
Review Meta AnalysisDo community specialist palliative care services that provide home nursing increase rates of home death for people with life-limiting illnesses? A systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative studies.
Systematic reviews and meta-analyses suggest that community specialist palliative care services (SPCSs) can avoid hospitalizations and enable home deaths. But more information is needed regarding the relative efficacies of different models. Family caregivers highlight home nursing as the most important service, but it is also likely the most costly. ⋯ A meta-analysis found evidence to be inconclusive that community SPCSs that offer home nursing increase home deaths without compromising symptoms or increasing costs. But a compelling trend warrants further confirmatory studies. Future trials should compare the relative efficacy of different models and intensities of SPCSs.