Symptom Assessment During the Last Week of Life

Identifying Attributes

Care Settings
Palliative Care
Country
Sweden
Publishing Organisation
Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare (SNBHW)
Type of Quality Indicator
Process
IOM Quality Dimension
Effectiveness
Domain
Physical Aspects of Care

Defining Attributes

Definition

Through systematic registration of untreated symptoms (worry, anxiety, constipation or nausea), the staff can become more aware of the patient's need for symptom relief and be able to take measures that can lead to improved quality of life and reduce complications.

Numerator

Patients with the negative outcome (i.e. for whom healthcare staff did not complete the option 'yes' that their other symptoms have been assessed, any disorder noted and such documented during the last week of life).

Denominator

All patients for whom the End-of-Life Questionnaire was completed for the Swedish Register of Palliative Care (SRPC).

Exclusions

None

Use of Risk Adjustment
No
Risk Adjustments
Stratifications

Data Attributes

Type of Data Collection
Standardised clinical data
Data Collection Methods

Swedish Register of Palliative Care.

Frequency of Data Collection
Continuous
Frequency of Data Collection in Days
1
Reporting Methods
Reporting Frequency
Monthly
Reporting Frequency in Days
30
Indicator Has Recommended Targets
No

Source and Reference Attributes

Evidence Source

The development of the Swedish Register of Palliative Care is here:https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0269216311414758. The description of the Swedish National Board on Health and Welfare national indicators used for quality monitoring are here: www.socialstyrelsen.se/globalassets/sharepoint-dokument/artikelkatalog/nationella-riktlinjer/2018-6-21.pdf

Technical Specifications
Link to Measurement Tools
Quality Indicator Confirmed to be Part of a Program Used to Monitor Quality and Safety of Care Among Older People at a Population-Level between 2012-2022
Yes
Assessed by the Australian Consortium for Aged Care Collaborators as Generally Containing Good Properties (Importance and Scientific Acceptability)
No
Australian Consortium for Aged Care Endorsed
No
Identified by PHARMA-Care Project
No
Upload Date
12 March 2025