Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries.
<h4>Aim</h4>Culture is becoming increasingly important in relation to end of life (EoL) care in a context of globalization, migration and European integration. We explore and compare socio-cultural issues that shape EoL care in seven European countries and critically appraise the existin...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2012-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034188&type=printable |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832539956828962816 |
|---|---|
| author | Marjolein Gysels Natalie Evans Arantza Meñaca Erin Andrew Franco Toscani Sylvia Finetti H Roeline Pasman Irene Higginson Richard Harding Robert Pool Project PRISMA |
| author_facet | Marjolein Gysels Natalie Evans Arantza Meñaca Erin Andrew Franco Toscani Sylvia Finetti H Roeline Pasman Irene Higginson Richard Harding Robert Pool Project PRISMA |
| author_sort | Marjolein Gysels |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Aim</h4>Culture is becoming increasingly important in relation to end of life (EoL) care in a context of globalization, migration and European integration. We explore and compare socio-cultural issues that shape EoL care in seven European countries and critically appraise the existing research evidence on cultural issues in EoL care generated in the different countries.<h4>Methods</h4>We scoped the literature for Germany, Norway, Belgium, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Portugal, carrying out electronic searches in 16 international and country-specific databases and handsearches in 17 journals, bibliographies of relevant papers and webpages. We analysed the literature which was unearthed, in its entirety and by type (reviews, original studies, opinion pieces) and conducted quantitative analyses for each country and across countries. Qualitative techniques generated themes and sub-themes.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 868 papers were reviewed. The following themes facilitated cross-country comparison: setting, caregivers, communication, medical EoL decisions, minority ethnic groups, and knowledge, attitudes and values of death and care. The frequencies of themes varied considerably between countries. Sub-themes reflected issues characteristic for specific countries (e.g. culture-specific disclosure in the southern European countries). The work from the seven European countries concentrates on cultural traditions and identities, and there was almost no evidence on ethnic minorities.<h4>Conclusion</h4>This scoping review is the first comparative exploration of the cultural differences in the understanding of EoL care in these countries. The diverse body of evidence that was identified on socio-cultural issues in EoL care, reflects clearly distinguishable national cultures of EoL care, with differences in meaning, priorities, and expertise in each country. The diverse ways that EoL care is understood and practised forms a necessary part of what constitutes best evidence for the improvement of EoL care in the future. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3244a539fb7a447d9b94c5aacb601a65 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2012-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-3244a539fb7a447d9b94c5aacb601a652025-02-05T05:33:12ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032012-01-0174e3418810.1371/journal.pone.0034188Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries.Marjolein GyselsNatalie EvansArantza MeñacaErin AndrewFranco ToscaniSylvia FinettiH Roeline PasmanIrene HigginsonRichard HardingRobert PoolProject PRISMA<h4>Aim</h4>Culture is becoming increasingly important in relation to end of life (EoL) care in a context of globalization, migration and European integration. We explore and compare socio-cultural issues that shape EoL care in seven European countries and critically appraise the existing research evidence on cultural issues in EoL care generated in the different countries.<h4>Methods</h4>We scoped the literature for Germany, Norway, Belgium, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Portugal, carrying out electronic searches in 16 international and country-specific databases and handsearches in 17 journals, bibliographies of relevant papers and webpages. We analysed the literature which was unearthed, in its entirety and by type (reviews, original studies, opinion pieces) and conducted quantitative analyses for each country and across countries. Qualitative techniques generated themes and sub-themes.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 868 papers were reviewed. The following themes facilitated cross-country comparison: setting, caregivers, communication, medical EoL decisions, minority ethnic groups, and knowledge, attitudes and values of death and care. The frequencies of themes varied considerably between countries. Sub-themes reflected issues characteristic for specific countries (e.g. culture-specific disclosure in the southern European countries). The work from the seven European countries concentrates on cultural traditions and identities, and there was almost no evidence on ethnic minorities.<h4>Conclusion</h4>This scoping review is the first comparative exploration of the cultural differences in the understanding of EoL care in these countries. The diverse body of evidence that was identified on socio-cultural issues in EoL care, reflects clearly distinguishable national cultures of EoL care, with differences in meaning, priorities, and expertise in each country. The diverse ways that EoL care is understood and practised forms a necessary part of what constitutes best evidence for the improvement of EoL care in the future.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034188&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Marjolein Gysels Natalie Evans Arantza Meñaca Erin Andrew Franco Toscani Sylvia Finetti H Roeline Pasman Irene Higginson Richard Harding Robert Pool Project PRISMA Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. PLoS ONE |
| title | Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. |
| title_full | Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. |
| title_fullStr | Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. |
| title_short | Culture and end of life care: a scoping exercise in seven European countries. |
| title_sort | culture and end of life care a scoping exercise in seven european countries |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034188&type=printable |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marjoleingysels cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT natalieevans cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT arantzamenaca cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT erinandrew cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT francotoscani cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT sylviafinetti cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT hroelinepasman cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT irenehigginson cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT richardharding cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT robertpool cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries AT projectprisma cultureandendoflifecareascopingexerciseinseveneuropeancountries |