Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2013
Review Meta AnalysisSocial-cultural factors in end-of-life care in Belgium: a scoping of the research literature.
As end-of-life (EoL) care expands across Europe and the world, service developments are increasingly studied. The sociocultural context in which such changes take place, however, is often neglected in research. ⋯ Various sociocultural factors influence the provision of EoL care in Belgium. This country provides a unique opportunity to witness how euthanasia is put into practice when legalized, in a context where palliative care is also highly developed and where many health care institutions have Catholic affiliation, providing an important example to others. Attention to how the sociocultural context affects EoL care adds to the current evidence base of service provision, which is essential in the further development of EoL care.