Palliative care research in Latin America and the Caribbean: From the beginning to the declaration of venice and beyond

摘要

Background: Research in palliative care has increased significantly in the last decade, while the vast majority of the global disease burden occurs in developing countries. Aims: To explore the palliative care research activity in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and its visibility in the international palliative care literature, with a special focus on research studies. Methods: A bibliometric analysis was conducted in MEDLINE?, Embase?, PsycINFO?, and CINAHL?. Inclusion criteria were: (1) articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals; (2) main subject was palliative care; (3) research study; (4) the first author or coauthors was based in LAC; and/or (5) the data collected derived from LAC. Results: One hundred six articles from 10 countries were identified in the literature research. The first publication dates from 1989 and was a qualitative study in Brazil. This study shows a modest contribution of publications from LAC. However, the volume of publications within the region is distributed unequally, reflecting the heterogeneity of the region: Brazil published more than half of the articles, while 35 countries have no publications. Most of the studies were quantitative research, predominantly cross-sectional studies. Qualitative studies often used interviews. Health care service was the most researched issue. Seventy percent of studies were carried out in institutions. Conclusions: Palliative care research should have a place in LAC. The development of a regional research agenda tailored to the needs and features of the region considering the health care structure and local resources available is indispensable.