Table 1 Inclusion and exclusion criteria according to PICO used for studies about palliative care conducted in mainland China or Sweden

Patient/Population

Included if the article was about any of these

 1. The older participants need to have an average age of 60 years or more and with expected limited time to live. The patients have needs of formal palliative care or informal care (efforts by next of kin).

 2. Next of kin of the older persons according to point 1.

 3. Staff can be included if it concerns interventions in palliative care including older persons according to point 1.

No limitations on diagnosis, disease, comorbidity or sex.

Intervention/programmes

Included any of the following studies

 1. Interventions/activities for the older people in palliative care

 2. Actions/activities for next of kin in palliative care/family support

 3. Assessment methods used in palliative care

 4. Evaluation of needs, measures/efforts or activities in respect of the older people or their next of kin

 5. Organization of palliative care

 6. Ethnic groups/minorities

 7. Complementary methods or Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

 8. Ethical consideration, dilemmas in palliative care

 9. Special forms of palliative care

 10. Collaboration and information transfer (between healthcare, municipality and/or authorities)

Comparison/control

Is there a comparison group when it is an RCT or an intervention?

Outcome measures

Included if any outcome measure was studied, for example one of the following:

 1. The quality of life of the older person or next of kin

 2. The participation in palliative care of the older person or next of kin

 3. Person-centred care

 4. Quality of care/Patient Satisfaction

 5. Ethical questions/dilemmas

 6. Side-effects (i.e. unwanted events, problems/difficulties/events associated with the intervention for the participants)

 7. Experiences

 8. Costs

 9. The above-mentioned outcomes that are distinguished by one or more of these aspects: gender, gender equality, ethnicity/culture or sexual orientation.

Exclusion criteria

 1. Younger average age than 60 years.

 2. Studies not conducted in mainland China or Sweden.

 3. Languages other than English.

 4. Literature reviews, scoping and systematic reviews.

 5. Only theoretical studies.

 6. Not older patients’ or next of kin’s experiences of living with or staff’s experiences of working for a person who has a fatal or severe disease (when only focus on experiences, not the intervention in palliative care).

 7. Epidemiological studies on the prevalence of fatal diseases, mortality etc.

 8. Descriptive medical studies on disease only (eg stages of cancer). Also tests/testing of cancer drugs, chemotherapy and radiotherapy and other medical/surgical treatment methods.

 9. Psychometric studies alone.

 10. Study protocol