Table 3.
Main features and comparisons of the tools
| Tool | IPOS (version 1) | GSF-PIG (6th edition, 2016) | RADPAC (original) | SPICT (April 2019) | NAT:PD-HF (original) | NECPAL (version 3.1, 2017) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main tools from which the tool was adapted | POS, POS-S, APCA African POS | NHPCO tool | -- | NHPCO tool, GSF-PIG, PPS, PPI | PC-NAT | GSF-PIG, SPICT |
| Generic vs HF-Specific | Generic | Generic | Generic | Generic | HF-Specific | Generic |
| Clinical settings | ||||||
| Diseases for which the tool can be used | Multiple (including heart failure) | Multiple (including heart disease) | Multiple (cancer, congestive heart failure, COPD) | Multiple (including heart/vascular disease) | Chronic heart failure | Multiple (including chronic heart disease) |
| Clinical settings for tool use | Multiple | Multiple | Primary care/general practice | Multiple | Multiple | Multiple |
| Completion method | ||||||
| Completed by | Healthcare professionals (staff version), patients (patient version) | Healthcare professionals | Primary care practitioners | Healthcare professionals | Healthcare professionals | Healthcare professionals |
| Objective vs subjective* | Subjective | Objective, subjective | Objective, subjective | Objective, subjective | Subjective | Objective, subjective |
| Items | ||||||
| Surprise Question | X | ✓ | X | X | X | ✓ |
| General indicators of health decline or PC need | X | ✓ | X | ✓ | X | ✓ |
| Disease-specific indicators of health decline or PC need | X | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X | ✓ |
| Open questions | ✓ | X | X | X | X | X |
| Length | ||||||
| Number of items (for HF patients) | 17 (+ 2 open questions) | 17 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 18 |
| Average time for completion |
Staff version: 2–5 min Patient version: 8 min |
-- | -- |
-- (Older versions: 5–7.5 min) |
5–10 min. (Dutch version: 26 min) |
-- (Older version: 2–8 min) |
| Minimal criteria to identify HF patients who require PC | -- | SQ+, or general indicators, or two HF-specific indicators | -- | Any general indicator or the HF-specific indicator | -- | SQ+ plus any other parameter |
| Need domains | ||||||
| Physical | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Psychological | ✓ | ✓ | X | X | ✓ | ✓ |
| Social | ✓ | X | X | X | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spiritual | ✓ | X | X | X | ✓ | X |
| Others | Informal carer, information, financial/personal | -- | -- | Informal carer | Informal carer, information, financial/legal, treatment regimens | -- |
APCA, African Palliative Care Association; COPD, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease; HF, heart failure; NHPCO, National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization; PC, palliative care; PC-NAT, Palliative Care-Needs Assessment Tool; POS, Palliative care Outcome Scale; POS-S, Palliative care Outcome Scale-Symptoms; PPI, Palliative Prognostic Index; PPS, Palliative Performance Scale. SQ+: a negative answer to the Surprise Question (healthcare professionals would not be surprised if the patient dies within the next year)
*Objective: medical records. Subjective: clinical judgement or patient/informal caregiver input