Concept analysis of hospice care

YU Ting; ZHOU Chuanru; WANG Cong; CHEN Qian; HU Ziyi; JIANG Yan

doi:10.12102/j.issn.1009-6493.2025.02.001

Abstract：Objective:To clarify the conceptual connotation of hospice care by summarizing its conceptual development,defining attributes,distinguishing concepts,predisposing factors,postdisposing impact and evaluation tools.Methods:Literature related to the concept of hospice care was retrieved from CNKI,Wanfang database,VIP database,China Biomedical Literature Service System,PubMed,PsycINFO,CINAHL database.And retrieval time was from database establishment to November 30,2023.Walker and Avant conceptual analysis were used to analyze literature.Results:A total of 36 literature were included.Hospice care included 5 defining attributes,namely treating terminally ill patients and their families as a whole,based on individual preferences and values of patients,aiming to improve quality of life and comfort,multi-disciplinary cooperation,effective communication and decision-making assistance.Its predisposing factors included end-stage disease,preferences and needs of patients and their families,institutional hardware and software configuration and social resource support.Its postdisposing impact included improvement of the quality of life of patients and their families,reduction of ineffective medical use before the end of life,optimization of medical resources allocation,and savings in medical and health expenditures.Conclusions:The concept of hospice care is not yet unified.In the future,the connotation of hospice care should be expanded and explored deeply,so as to promote relevant research and clinical practice.