Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
BMJ Open. 2022 Jul 20;12(7):e064743. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-064743.
To provide equitable cancer care at the end of life, it is essential to first understand the evidence underpinning the existence of unequal cancer outcomes. Study design, measurement and analytical decisions made by researchers are a function of their social systems, academic training, values and biases, which influence both the findings and interpretation of whether inequalities or inequities exist. Methodological choices can lead to results with different implications for research and policy priorities, including where supplementary programmes and services are offered and for whom. The objective of this scoping review is to provide an overview of the methods, including study design, measures and statistical approaches, used in quantitative and qualitative observational studies of health equity in end-of-life cancer care, and to consider how these methods align with recommended approaches for studying health equity questions.
This scoping review follows Arksey and O'Malley's expanded framework for scoping reviews. We will systematically search Medline, Embase, CINAHL and PsycINFO electronic databases for quantitative and qualitative studies that examined equity stratifiers in relation to end-of-life cancer care and/or outcomes published in English or French between 2010 and 2021. Two authors will independently review all titles, abstracts and full texts to determine which studies meet the inclusion criteria. Data from included full-text articles will be extracted into a data form that will be developed and piloted by the research team. Extracted information will be summarised quantitatively and qualitatively.
No ethics approval is required for this scoping review. Results will be disseminated to researchers examining questions of health equity in cancer care through scientific publication and presentation at relevant conferences.
为了在生命末期提供公平的癌症护理，首先必须了解导致癌症结局不平等的证据。研究人员在研究设计、测量和分析决策中，受到其社会体系、学术培训、价值观和偏见的影响，这些因素影响着不平等或不公平现象是否存在的发现和解释。方法选择可能会导致研究和政策重点的结果存在差异，包括提供补充计划和服务的地点和对象。本范围综述的目的是概述在生命末期癌症护理中健康公平性的定量和定性观察研究中使用的方法，包括研究设计、措施和统计方法，并考虑这些方法如何与研究健康公平问题的推荐方法保持一致。
本范围综述遵循阿特赛和奥马利（Arksey and O'Malley）扩展的范围综述框架。我们将系统地搜索 Medline、Embase、CINAHL 和 PsycINFO 电子数据库，以查找 2010 年至 2021 年间以英文或法文发表的关于与生命末期癌症护理和/或结局相关的公平分层因素的定量和定性研究。两名作者将独立审查所有标题、摘要和全文，以确定哪些研究符合纳入标准。从纳入的全文文章中提取的数据将被输入到一个数据表格中，该表格将由研究团队开发和试点。提取的信息将进行定量和定性总结。
本范围综述不需要伦理批准。结果将通过科学出版物和在相关会议上的介绍传播给研究癌症护理中健康公平问题的研究人员。
