Palliative care in children in Wales: a study of provision and need.
OBJECTIVE
To establish incidence and prevalence of children needing palliative care in Wales.


METHODS
Children were identified in three ways: (1) from paediatricians using the Welsh Paediatric Surveillance Unit (WPSU); (2) referrals to the specialist palliative medicine service based in Cardiff; and (3) children under the care of the two principal children's hospices serving Wales. All children referred or reported between January 2001 and December 2002 were included.


RESULTS
A total of 226 children were identified. Fifty (22%) were identified by paediatricians, 58 (26%) were referred to the specialist paediatric palliative medicine service, 158 (70%) had been under the care of a children's hospice, and 34 (15%) were identified by more than one source. This study identified approximately 3.75 per 10000 children. This is about half the prevalence figures quoted in the ACT/ RCPCH document in 1997.


CONCLUSIONS
The study may underestimate prevalence. Children needing palliative medicine are still under-recognized in Wales. The overlap between children's hospice care and specialist paediatric palliative medicine is relatively small.
Hain
Richard D W
RD
University of Wales College of Medicine, Department of Child Health, Llandough Hospital, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan CF64 2XX, Wales, UK. HainRD@Cardiff.ac.uk
D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D017051:Hospice Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014852:Wales