The African Palliative Care Association (APCA) develops and validates outcome measures for palliative care in Africa. Three measures are available to health facilities, researchers and programmes. Registration is free; once you register, the measure you selected is sent to you by email.
APCA Palliative Care Outcome Scale (APCA POS)
The APCA POS contains 10 items addressing the physical and psychological symptoms, spiritual, practical and emotional concerns, and psychosocial needs of the patient and family. Questions 1 to 7 are directed at patients and questions 8 to 10 at family or informal caregivers. Answers are scored on scales from 0 to 5 with numerical and descriptive labels. The African version is staff-completed, and respondents answer verbally or with a hand scale (0 = closed fist, 5 = all fingers open). Sent to you immediately on registration.
APCA Integrated Palliative Care Outcome Scale (APCA IPOS)
The APCA IPOS builds on the POS and adds a structured list of common symptoms, so that physical symptoms, emotional wellbeing, information needs and practical concerns are captured in one measure. It is suitable for adults in hospital, hospice, home-based and research settings. Sent to you immediately on registration.
APCA Children's Palliative Care Outcome Scale (APCA C-POS)
The APCA C-POS is APCA's newest measure, developed and validated for children and young people with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions. It is available in several versions: self-report versions by age group, and proxy versions completed by a parent or carer for younger children and for children who cannot self-report. Because it is new, every user attends a short online training session with the APCA team before receiving it. After registering you will be invited to book your training; the complete C-POS package is sent to you once training is completed.
Register here to receive an APCA Palliative Care Outcome Scale measure
For questions about the measures or the registration process, contact dianah.hossana@africanpalliativecare.org.
Further reading
Validation of a core outcome measure for palliative care in Africa: the APCA African Palliative Outcome Scale. Harding R, Selman L, Agupio G, Dinat N, Downing J, Gwyther L, Mashao T, Mmoledi K, Moll T, Sebuyira LM, Panjatovic B, Higginson IJ. Health Qual Life Outcomes 2010;8(10).
Development and validation of the APCA African Palliative Outcome Scale (PMC2483665)
Impact of the APCA African Palliative Outcome Scale (POS) on care and practice