Table 3.

Eligibility Criteria

PICOa Criteria
Population	A person 18 years of age or older, caring for a family member, friend or close friend in the palliative phase of cancer(cancer that is unlikely to be cured or controlled with treatment; the cancer may have spread from where it first started to nearby tissue, lymph nodes, or distant parts of the body; treatment may be given to help shrink the tumor, slow the of cancer cells, or relieve symptoms but it is not a cure [44]) being cared for by specialized palliative care services/units
Intervention	Information on grief adjustment related to the experience prior to the loss specific to the palliative phase
Comparison	Not applicable here
Outcome	Relative quantitative and qualitative measures: grieving process, quality of life, emotional functioning, intra- and inter-personnel functioning, cognitive functioning
Study plan	Randomized and non-randomized / observational Protocols: experimental, quasi-experimental, non-experimental (exclusion: case studies, conference summaries, expert opinions including interviews)
Methods	Quantitative Qualitative Mixed
Strategy	Interview surveys Questionnaire surveys Observational surveys (participant, non-participant, structured, unstructured observation)
Study design	Retrospective Prospective
Publication status& language	No restrictions

^aPICO Population intervention comparison outcomes