Targeted Digital Health Intervention in End-of-Life and Hospice Care: A Scoping Review.
Misun Jeon, Heejung Jeon, Sanghee Kim
PMID 39749858WHAT IT FOUND
Across 38 studies, end-of-life and hospice digital health research mostly mapped prediction models, mHealth, telehealth and records systems.
It did not test whether care improves. Most lacked control groups and no acceptability, cost or equity outcomes were measured.
Key findings
01The review selected 38 studies of digital health interventions for people receiving end-of-life or hospice care.
02Twenty-four of the 38 experimental studies did not include a control group.
03No study measured acceptability, accountability, information, cost or equity as a primary outcome.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The review did not assess study quality, so it cannot rank the included studies as good or poor evidence. Many included studies were observational or pre-post designs, and 24 of the 38 experimental studies had no control group. Only five randomised controlled trials were included, so the review cannot show whether digital interventions improve patient or caregiver outcomes. The review covered English studies published between January 2019 and June 2023, so non-English work and later digital health developments were missed. Most studies came from North America, with 15 of 38 from North America and 13 from the United States, limiting generalisability. No health equity details such as race or ethnicity were extracted. No study measured acceptability, accountability, information, cost or equity as a primary outcome.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. Funding was provided by the Mo-Im Kim Nursing Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, and the National Research Foundation of Korea.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that digital health interventions improve end-of-life or hospice care. The review did not assess study quality or effectiveness, and 24 of the 38 experimental studies did not include a control group.