Literature Review

[Germany] Unmet needs of heart failure patients across the different domains of palliative care – A qualitative interview studyHeart & Lung; by Chiara Pfeffer, Felix Schoenratha, Lennart Tügend, Anahita Khamseh, Susanne Jöbges, Johann Ahne, Asita Behzadie, Moritz Blum; 9/26Currently, palliative care provision for patients with heart failure (HF) is limited and usually not tailored to the specific needs they might have. In this study, we sought to gain a better understanding of the needs and expectations expressed by patients with HF regarding palliative care. Participants expressed needs and expectations across all eight domains of palliative care. Some needs were specific to HF, e.g. for more HF expertise among all healthcare providers. Other needs were more generally associated with serious illnesses, e.g. long term access to psychological counselling for patients and caregivers, help with coming to terms with limited life expectancy, or provision of information in accessible language. Patients with HF express a host of unmet needs, many of which could be addressed by palliative care.

[United Kingdom] Cream tea party for hospice breaks world record BBC News; by Caroline Robinson; 9/22/26 A hospice has broken a world record for the largest cream tea party. Cornwall Hospice brought 2,483 people together in the attempt to break the record previously held by Mercedes-Benz in Beijing with 1,088 attendees. The event at the Royal Cornwall Showground on Saturday was hosted by entertainer Johnny Cowling who said: "This is what Cornwall is all about - supporting one another." The charity said the record attempt also marked its 45th year of supporting people across the Duchy.

[United Kingdom] Dad who hates sand to take on Sahara trek BBC News; by Emma Stanley; 9/13/26 A dad who hates sand is trekking the Sahara Desert to raise money for the hospice that cares for his son. Andrew Privett, from Leyland in Lancashire, is one of 31 adventurers who are preparing to trek 30 miles (48km) across Morocco's Erg Chegaga Dunes over six days in November. They will face extreme temperatures, challenging terrain and long days beneath the desert sun, in the first overseas challenge for Chorley's Derian House Children's Hospice.

[Portugal] International differences in the technical qualities of place of death classifications and data: A survey of researchers' perspectivesPalliative Medicine; by Mayra Delalibera, Sílvia Lopes, Inês Dias da Silva, Barbara Gomes; 9/26Place of death is a key population-level indicator for palliative care and health services planning. However, substantial international variation in how it is recorded limits cross-country comparisons and health system evaluations. This is the first study to assess place of death classifications and data from researchers' perspectives. Findings highlight critical limitations in current classification systems and provide guidance for developing an international classification aligned with UN and WHO recommendations. This will enable more meaningful cross-country comparisons and strengthen evidence to inform palliative care and health services planning worldwide.

[United Kingdom] Majority of nurses have given end-of-life care in corridors The Daily Mail; by Shaun Wooller; 9/1/26 More than half of nurses have treated patients receiving end-of-life care in corridors or other makeshift spaces, a damning report reveals. Terminally ill patients are being condemned to 'undignified' deaths and poor quality care in NHS hospitals due to crippling staff shortages, the health workers warn. Meanwhile, overcrowding means some of the most vulnerable are left languishing on trollies where they must go to the toilet and even die in 'full glare of the public.' Nurses told researchers of widespread problems in care planning ... and in some cases patients being resuscitated against their wishes. The survey of 1,153 UK nurses and healthcare professionals by the charity Marie Curie and nursing website Nursing Standard found 55 per cent had treated patients in corridors or non-clinical areas, such as cupboards and offices.

[Israel] Existential suffering at the end of life in long-term care: A critical essay on recognition, dignity, and witnessPalliative Care & Social Practice; by Anat Romem, Rachel Bardach; 7/26Existential suffering is widely acknowledged in palliative care, but it remains inconsistently recognized and unevenly addressed in long-term care. This critical essay argues that the gap is not caused by clinician indifference, but by a persistent mismatch between whole-person ideals and care systems organized around measurable symptoms, risk management, task completion, and professional uncertainty. [This] ... essay identifies three interrelated shortcomings: the reduction of suffering to medically actionable symptoms; the depersonalizing effects of institutional routines on frail older adults; and the absence of shared existential literacy across interdisciplinary teams. The essay also cautions against romanticizing suffering or treating meaning-making as a clinical expectation. It proposes a practical framework of recognition, dignity, and witness: recognizing biography and identity as clinically relevant; protecting dignity in the ordinary details of care; and enacting witness ... Long-term care cannot resolve every existential wound, but it can reduce existential neglect by treating personhood as a core quality indicator of palliative care.

[Sweden] Effects and user-reported experiences of a self-management mobile health app for grieving adolescents: Randomized controlled trialJournal of Medical Internet Research; by Rebecca Rhodin, Rakel Eklund, Anneli Silvén Hagström, Rolf Gjestad, Atle Dyregrov, Josefin Sveen; 7/26Adolescents who experience the loss of a family member are at increased risk of adverse mental health outcomes, yet many face barriers or may be reluctant to access in-person or group-based support. This study evaluated the short- and long-term mental health effects of Alba - Youth in Grief, a preventive self-management mobile app for bereaved adolescents. Intention-to-treat analyses showed moderate reductions in prolonged grief symptoms at 12 months among adolescents randomized to Alba compared with the control group, with no significant effects at the 2- and 6-month follow-ups. The app group also demonstrated greater reductions in grief reactions, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and depressive symptoms compared with controls, with the strongest effects observed at long-term follow-up.

[Portugal] The ethical and psychosocial dimensions of palliative care in prison: A scoping reviewJournal of Bioethical Inquiry; by Ana Gehl-Costa, P. Reis-Pina; 7/26With prison populations expanding and aging, palliative care (PC) is an urgent concern. People in prison (PIP) face chronic illness, mental health conditions, and social vulnerabilities, creating ethical and psychosocial challenges to dignified end-of-life (EOL) care... Ethical domains included structural neglect of PIP with life-limiting illness, barriers to compassionate release, compromised autonomy, denial of death in prison culture, and inadequacies in care quality and access. Psychosocial domains encompassed stigma, mistrust, isolation, existential suffering, and fractured social bonds. PIP-led hospice models offered companionship but raised tensions around labour, confidentiality, and the normalization of death in custody... Prison-based PC requires systemic reforms, staff training, family and advocacy involvement, and legal safeguards to ensure equitable, compassionate, and dignified EOL care.Publisher's note: This article was included in the August 2026 issue of End-of-Life Care Behind Bars - Current Thinking, by Barry R. Ashpole.