National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan Society of Home Health Care, and Kaohsiung Medical University in Taiwan are conducting the “Home-based Longitudinal Investigation of the Multidisciplinary Team Integrated Care (HOLISTIC)” study. 600 eligible patient-caregiver dyads will be recruited and followed with comprehensive quantitative assessments during six home visits over two years.

HOLISTIC study protocol

We went through validated procedures for forward-backwards translations of a SPICT Traditional Chinese version and the review process by professionals in palliative care and home healthcare. All items in this structured questionnaire were piloted among home healthcare patients via face-to-face interviews for the feasibility testing. The validation study is completed and the SPICT-TC will be applied in the HOLISTIC study.

Our palliative home care center is located in the Songklanagarind Hospital, a 1000-bed teaching hospital and the largest hospital in Southern Thailand. Our center offers home and community care services for patients with cancers and chronic diseases, residency training and research. Under the 'Memorandum of Understanding' with the National Taiwan University, we have been exchanging staff and making residency visits for palliative care training.

Our center has back-translated and adapted SPICT-LIS in clinical practice. The referral cases from other specialists including internal medicine, surgery and oncology are screened with SPICT-LIS to identify if palliative care would be benefit. We recognise that SPICT-LIS has potential for improvement and in continuing development of palliative care.

We are open to collaboration from any colleagues interested in our work and SPICT-LIS.