Another form to fill in! Clients' reflections on the hospice use of questionnaires

The use of validated tools is increasingly accepted as an unqualified good that is viewed as best practice in supportive care. This article begins to explore the impact of standardized questionnaire use in supportive care by presenting findings from recent qualitative research on clients' perceptions of the use of standardized assessment tools during their hospice experience.

There were two arms to this phenomenological descriptive study: A. Interviews with hospice patients and their carers; B. Interviews with hospice staff. The results from arm A are reported in this article. This involved interviews with ten families (available patient and carer) who had hospice experience with questionnaires and ten families who were cared for without questionnaires. The interviews were audiorecorded, transcribed verbatim, and thematically analysed.

The research presented in this article is seminal work in the area which affirms significant concerns about the use of questionnaires in hospice practice. The evidence indicates the majority of clients dislike the use of questionnaires and points to questionnaire use being a practice built around staff, rather than client, needs. The findings also provide insight into the process of collusion by which hospice workers who are enthusiastic about the use of questionnaires can be led to believe, because of client gratitude, that the process is positive.

Questionnaires should not be seen as an unqualified good, and thus should not be automatically accepted as best practice within hospice or palliative care service provision.