Median score and Wilcoxon signed-rank (p value) for patient (n=50) and ICG (n=50) for each POS and POS-S item
| POS item | Patient median (minimum, Q1, Q3, maximum) | ICG median (minimum, Q1, Q3, maximum) | Wilcoxon signed-rank (p value) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pain | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.622 |
| Breathlessness | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.811 |
| Weakness | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 3 (0,2,3,4) | 0.001** |
| Nausea | 0 (0,0,2,3) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.305 |
| Vomiting | 0 (0,0,1,3) | 0 (0,0,2,3) | 0.875 |
| Appetite | 2 (0,0,3,4) | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 0.087 |
| Constipation | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 1(0,0,2,4) | 0.182 |
| Mouth problems | 0 (0,1,2,4) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.127 |
| Drowsiness | 2 (0,1,2,4) | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 0.003** |
| Immobility | 2 (0,0,3,4) | 2.5 (0,2,3,4) | 0.001** |
| Anxious/worried | 1.5 (0,0,3,4) | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 0.128 |
| Family/friends anxious/worried | 3 (0,2,3,4) | 3 (0,2,3,4) | 0.962 |
| Standard of help to relatives | 2 (0,1,4,4) | 2 (0,1,4,4) | 0.199 |
| Information given | 0 (0,0,2,4) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.237 |
| Standard of facilities | 2 (0,2,3,4) | 2 (0,2,3,4) | 0.582 |
| Share feelings | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 1 (0,0,2,4) | 0.907 |
| Depression | 1 (0,0,3,4) | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 0.199 |
| Time spent by staff | 2 (0,1,2,4) | 2 (0,1,3,4) | 0.034* |
| Felt good about self | 2 (0,0,3,4) | 3 (0,2,4,4) | 0.0001*** |
| Time wasted on appointments | 0 (0,0,0,2) | 0 (0,0,0,4) | 0.125 |
| Personal issues | 2 (0,0,4,4) | 2 (0,0,2,4) | 0.875 |
POS is a Likert scale, and items are scored from 0 (not at all) to 4 (overwhelmingly).
Significant difference between patient-ratings and informal caregiver (ICG) ratings is labelled as follows: *p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001.
ICG, informal caregiver; POS, palliative outcome scale; POS-S, POS-symptoms.