• Claudia Bausewein, Steffen T Simon, Hamid Benalia, Julia Downing, Faith N Mwangi-Powell, Barbara A Daveson, Richard Harding, Irene J Higginson, and PRISMA.
• King's College London, Cicely Saunders Institute, Department of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation, London, UK. Claudia.bausewein@kcl.ac.uk
• Health Qual Life Out. 2011 Jan 1;9:27.

BackgroundPatient-reported outcome measurement (PROM) plays an increasingly important role in palliative care. A variety of measures exists and is used in clinical care, audit and research. However, little is known about professionals' views using these measures. The aim of this study is to describe the use and experiences of palliative care professionals with outcome measures.MethodsA web-based online survey was conducted in Europe and Africa. Professionals working in clinical care, audit and research in palliative care were invited to the survey via national palliative care associations and various databases. Invitation e-mails were sent with a link to the questionnaire.ResultsOverall participation rate 42% (663/1592), overall completion rate 59% (392/663). The majority of respondents were female (63.4%), mean age 46 years (SD 9). 68.1% respondents from Europe and 73.3% from Africa had experiences with outcome measures in palliative care. Non-users reported time constraints, burden, lack of training and guidance as main reasons. In clinical care/audit, assessment of patients' situation, monitoring changes and evaluation of services were main reasons for use. Choice of OMs for research was influenced by validity of the instrument in palliative care and comparability with international literature. Main problems were related to patient characteristics, staff, and outcome measures. Participants expressed the need for more guidance and training in the use of PROMs.ConclusionsProfessionals need more support for the use and implementation of PROMs in clinical practice and research through training and guidance in order to improve patient care.

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