Health professional involvement in the formulation of research questions: findings from the Italian guideline on palliative care in adults with glioma

Background In 2017, the European Association of Neuro-Oncology (EANO) published the guideline for palliative care in adults with glioma. The Italian Society of Neurology (SIN), the Italian Society for Palliative Care (SICP), and the Italian Association for Neuro-Oncology (AINO) joined forces to update the guideline, and adapt it to the Italian context. Aim We involved patients, caregivers, and (herein presented) healthcare professionals (HPs) in the formulation of the guideline clinical questions. Design and participants Online survey of Italian HPs experienced in the care of patients with glioma. Participants rated the importance of 14 pre-specified intervention topics on a 0/10 scale and gave their free comments. Results Of 244 participants, 149 (61%) were palliative medicine (PM) HPs and 95 Neuro HPs. Their mean age was 48.9 years, 63% were women, and 48% had over 12 years of experience in the care of glioma patients. Physicians were 68%, followed by nurses (28%), psychologists (7%), therapists (3%), and social workers (2%). Most HPs rated the pre-specified topics as important (score ≥ 7) or critical (score ≥ 9), with some differences between PM and Neuro HP groups. There were 58 free comments: 46 (78%) on nine pre-specified topics, and 13 on four new topics, three of which were guideline-pertinent (“caregiver’s support and education”; “family physician’s training in neuro-oncology”; and “PM HPs' training in neuro-oncology”). Conclusions Participation in the survey was high and information-rich, between-group rating differences reflecting HP background. Participants endorsed the 14 intervention topics devised by the guideline panel and identified three additional topics.