Mondejar-Pont Meritxell, Abbott-Anderson Kristen, Ramon-Aribau Anna, Kumpula Renee, Neiman Tammy, De Ruiter Hans-Peter
Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellness, University of Vic, Vic, Spain.
School of Nursing, Minnesota State University, Mankato, MN, United States.
JMIR Res Protoc. 2022 Jul 1;11(7):e36037. doi: 10.2196/36037.
The aging population in the Global North is associated with an increased prevalence of multiple chronic diseases that would benefit from integrated palliative care. In this context, it is vital to consider the effectiveness of health care systems' response to the needs of the older population residing in rural areas, including access to palliative care services. Understanding palliative care program availability and palliative care system characteristics is important in creating useful health interventions in rural areas.
This study aims to provide an international view on palliative care in rural areas. A study exploring palliative care services offered in Southern Minnesota will be carried out, building on a previous study conducted in Osona, Spain. Findings from both studies will be compared, providing insights into the strengths of each system and identifying areas for growth.
This study will be performed using qualitative case study methodology. Using a similar methodology to the one used in the Spanish study, palliative care services will be explored in a similarly sized rural area in Southern Minnesota. This will be accomplished by (1) reviewing available literature related to the Southern Minnesota palliative care system and (2) identifying key providers in this US palliative care system who will be invited to participate in semistructured interviews. The study participants will be asked about the gaps between ideal integrated palliative care system services and the existing complementary palliative care services, and the ethical issues and dilemmas that evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Following ethical approval for this protocol, data collection is anticipated to begin in spring or summer 2022 and is expected to take 6 months. Data collection will be followed by data analysis in fall 2022. Finally, the researchers plan to disseminate the findings in spring 2023.
Comparing 2 similarly sized but culturally different rural palliative care systems in Minnesota and Osona will provide insights into how integrated palliative care systems impact the older population and those with chronic illnesses. Study findings will contribute to enhanced patient care, organizational improvements, policy change, and an understanding of the impact of different health care system models.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/36037.
全球北方地区的人口老龄化与多种慢性病患病率的上升相关，而综合姑息治疗对此有益。在这种背景下，至关重要的是要考虑医疗保健系统对农村地区老年人口需求的应对效果，包括获得姑息治疗服务的情况。了解姑息治疗项目的可及性和姑息治疗系统的特点对于在农村地区开展有效的健康干预措施很重要。
本研究旨在提供关于农村地区姑息治疗的国际视角。将在明尼苏达州南部开展一项探索姑息治疗服务的研究，该研究以之前在西班牙奥索纳进行的一项研究为基础。将对两项研究的结果进行比较，以深入了解每个系统的优势并确定发展领域。
本研究将采用定性案例研究方法。使用与西班牙研究相同的方法，在明尼苏达州南部一个规模相当的农村地区探索姑息治疗服务。这将通过以下方式实现：（1）查阅与明尼苏达州南部姑息治疗系统相关的现有文献；（2）确定美国该姑息治疗系统中的关键提供者，并邀请他们参与半结构化访谈。研究参与者将被问及理想的综合姑息治疗系统服务与现有的补充姑息治疗服务之间的差距，以及在新冠疫情期间出现的伦理问题和困境。
在本方案获得伦理批准后，预计将于2022年春季或夏季开始数据收集，预计需要6个月时间。数据收集之后将于2022年秋季进行数据分析。最后，研究人员计划于2023年春季传播研究结果。
比较明尼苏达州和奥索纳两个规模相当但文化不同的农村姑息治疗系统，将深入了解综合姑息治疗系统如何影响老年人口和慢性病患者。研究结果将有助于改善患者护理、组织改进、政策变革，并增进对不同医疗保健系统模式影响的理解。
国际注册报告识别号（IRRID）：PRR1-10.2196/36037。
