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. 2022 Jul 13;12(7):e054386. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-054386

Table 2.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion Exclusion
Participants All serious physical illness as defined by Kelly et al 2014; 2016: serious illness is a health condition that carries a high risk of mortality AND either negatively impacts a person’s daily function or quality of life, OR excessively strains their caregivers.
Caregivers of patients with serious physical illness defined above.
Healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses, social workers, etc) caring for patients with serious physical illness.		 Patients with conditions considered risk factors to develop serious illness such as hypertension.
Interventions Any interventions delivered using a person-centred, or client-centred, or patient-centred, or family centred approach such as involving patients in decision-making about their care, setting goals and plans, patient being involved managing their own disease, interventions focused on the whole person, holistic approach. Interventions delivered in any format that is focused on the needs of the patients. Any interventions delivered without patient involvement or decision making about their care or helping them take actions to support themselves.
Studies and comparator Published intervention studies.
Written in English language only.
Evaluations using a comparator.
The comparison group should either be usual care/standard care, or a comparator intervention.		 Unpublished studies, studies not written in English language, conference proceedings, conference abstracts,
non-randomised trials.
No comparison group.
Outcomes Patient and family caregiver self-report outcomes, for example:

  • pain and symptom prevalence and intensity/severity, interference with daily activities, knowledge and practice of self-management, quality of life;

  • psychosocial outcomes such as stress, anxiety, depression, burnout, distress;

  • social, practical and spiritual; knowledge of pain and/or symptom management, quality of life, psychological outcomes (anxiety, stress, depression, distress) and caregiver motivation to provide care.


Formal and informal health service use.
Costs of services.		 Outcomes not related to person-centred care (outcomes not focusing on physical, psychological social and spiritual aspects of care).