Is palliative care cost-effective in low-income and middle-income countries? A mixed-methods systematic review.
Eleanor Anderson ReidOlga KovalerchikKaren JubanyikStuart BrownDenise HerseyLiz GrantPublished in: BMJ supportive & palliative care (2018)
Despite the small number of included studies, wide variety of study types and lack of high-quality studies, several patterns emerged: (1) low-cost PC delivery in low-income and middle-income countries is possible, (2) patient-reported outcomes are favourable and (3) PC is less costly than the alternative. This review highlights the extraordinary need for robust cost-effectiveness analysis of PC in low-income and middle-income countries in order to develop health economic models for the delivery of PC, direct resource allocation and guide healthcare policy for PC delivery in low-income and middle-income countries.