AbstractEvidence-informed palliative care (EIPC) denotes thoughtful integration of recent scientific evidence with patient/caregiver preferences to individualize care plan and process for terminally ill patients and their families. The proponents of EIPC claim that practice decisions and communication should be evidence-based or evidence-informed, whereas evidence for most palliative and end-of-life care is insufficient and/or inconclusive. The demand to establish evidence, together with limitations in conducting clinical trials on palliative care patient population had necessitated the introduction of Delphi process as a means of evidence. The Delphi process utilizes expert opinion for conflicting decisions, arrive at a consensus and establish levels of evidence for various care recommendations. Herewith this review article highlighted the role of Delphi process and Delphi studies in providing scientific information which bridges the evidence-to-practice gap in EIPC. We grouped identified studies qualitatively under palliative care practice, education, research and administration. There is scope for future research to develop better treatment guidelines for palliative care utilizing the Delphi approach.
Keywords: Evidence-Informed Palliative Care; Practice-Based Evidence; Expert Panel Guidelines.