A Systematic Review and Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis Investigating the Effectiveness of Psychological Short-Term Interventions in Inpatient Palliative Care Settings

Abstract

This paper reviews and summarises the evidence of short-term psychosocial interventions (up to 12 sessions delivered within less than eight weeks) on anxiety, depression, and emotional distress in palliative patients in inpatient settings. We screened publications from the following five databases, Embase, PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and CINAHL, from their inception to 10 September 2021. The eligible studies included controls receiving standard palliative care, actively treated controls, and wait-list controls. Nine studies met the eligibility criteria and reported the effects of five psychosocial interventions in a total of N = 543 patients. We followed PRISMA-guidelines for outcome reporting and the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool for assessing study quality. This paper used the network meta-analysis to compare multiple treatments by providing greater statistical power and the cross-validation of observed treatment effects, using the R package BUGSnet. Compared to control groups, the following psychosocial interventions in inpatient settings showed to be superior: life review interventions were the best ranked treatment for improving anxiety and distress, while the top ranked treatment for reducing depression was outlook intervention. The short-term psychosocial interventions investigated in this meta-analysis, especially life review intervention, are feasible and can potentially improve anxiety, depression, and distress in palliative inpatients and should therefore be offered in inpatient settings.

Risk of suicide after diagnosis of severe physical health conditions: a retrospective cohort study of 47 million people

“…Evidence indicates that psychotherapy and short-term psychosocial interventions for patients can mitigate symptoms of depression and anxiety and improve quality of life, including for patients with severe physical health conditions. 22 , 23 Diagnosing conditions as early as possible could also help improve prognosis and minimise the mental health effects.…”

Effectiveness on Quality of Life and Life Satisfaction for Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Life Review and Reminiscence Therapy across Settings

“…Up until now, a range of studies have supported the effectiveness of life review and reminiscence therapy in treating various psychological problems as cost-effective, nonpharmacological interventions with minimal side effects [9,10]. In a Bayesian network meta-analysis, the findings indicate that life review emerges as the best-ranked intervention for relieving anxiety and distress in an inpatient palliative care setting compared to three other short-term psychological interventions (cognitive behavioral therapy; mindfulness intervention; action control group) [11]. Moreover, another meta-analysis supports the idea that reminiscence therapy effectively improves cognitive function and alleviates depression in people with dementia (p < 0.001) [12].…”