Feasibility, acceptability and needs in telemedicine for palliative care

Area of Science:

• Palliative Care
• Health Services Research
• Digital Health

Background:

• Telemedicine in palliative care originated in resource-limited settings.
• The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated telemedicine adoption in urbanized countries like Switzerland.
• Skepticism exists regarding telemedicine's effectiveness in relationship-based palliative care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze needs, feasibility, and acceptance barriers for telemedicine in Swiss palliative care.
• To inform the implementation of telemedicine interventions in this context.

Main Methods:

• A scoping review following PRISMA-ScR guidelines.
• Searched PubMed, Ovid SP, Medline, Cochrane, and Scopus databases.
• Included 27 studies and 4 registry entries after screening 520 records.

Main Results:

• Most studies were single-arm interventions from areas with geographic access barriers.
• Feasibility was reported in 69% of studies, with high acceptability (84.1-100%).
• Patient/professional needs were addressed in only 16% of studies, highlighting communication, coordination, and technical reliability.

Conclusions:

• Telemedicine in palliative care demonstrates high feasibility and acceptability.
• Patient needs are frequently unaddressed in existing research.
• A needs assessment is recommended prior to telemedicine implementation in Switzerland to ensure success.