Quality of life assessment in palliative care
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Quality of life assessment in palliative care day services
IRAS ID
150696
Contact name
Martin Dempster
Contact email
Research summary
Service users attending Palliative Care Day Services (PCDS) have reported that these services have a positive impact on their Quality of Life (QoL), but rigorous research evidence is lacking. This inconsistency can be attributed to a problem of measurement – instruments used to assess Quality of Life (QoL) may not encapsulate domains of life most valued by service users. The individualised approach to QoL assessment provides a means of assessing QoL that prioritises domains most valued by each individual, whilst still producing quantifiable evidence. However, head-to-head comparisons between an individualised assessment of QoL and more traditional QoL questionnaires are necessary to decide which instruments are most appropriate when evaluating the impact of PCDS on users' QoL.
Therefore, the aim of this study is, primarily, to compare the sensitivity to change of the SEIQoL-DW (an individualised instrument), the MQOL (a palliative care-specific instrument) and the SF-36 (a generic instrument) among patients receiving palliative day care services. This will involve the recruitment of 165 day service patients who will complete the QoL instruments at two time points with a 3 week interval.
REC name
South Central - Hampshire B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/SC/1051
Date of REC Opinion
29 Jul 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion