scholarly journals Developing and Refining an End-of-Life Care Manual for Chinese Immigrant Caregivers

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 538-539
Author(s):  
Mandong Liu ◽  
Iris Chi

Abstract Planning for end-of-life (EOL) care in advance can enhance one’s quality of life at EOL and decrease caregiver stress and anxiety. Culturally sensitive educational programs are needed to educate the public and encourage advance planning. This paper describes the team’s efforts to develop and evaluate an EOL manual designed for Chinese immigrant caregivers. In 2019, one-on-one interviews were conducted with six Chinese caregivers and five Chinese geriatric social workers in Los Angeles County to obtain their feedback on manual improvement. Detailed suggestions included adding more content in the introduction to decrease fear for discussing death-related topics, such as using the concept of “life in four seasons”; having more case examples as how to initiate advance planning conversation with the older adult under different circumstances; adding content on how advance care planning and its documentation is legally protected, etc. Culturally sensitive advance planning community education is feasible among immigrant populations.

Author(s):  
Simon Chapman ◽  
Ben Lobo

This chapter provides an overview of the MCA’s impact on end-of-life care. It situates the MCA in the current context of policy and practice. It describes how the MCA can be used to improve care, enable people to express and protect choices, and empower and enable the professional and/or the proxy decision maker. It also presents an introduction and explanation of the role of the IMCA and how it might apply to advance care planning (ACP) and end of life decision making, and an explanation of the legal and ethical process involved in reaching best interest decisions, especially for potentially vulnerable people in care homes and other settings.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 417-418
Author(s):  
Hyo Jung Lee ◽  
Giyeon Kim

Abstract Although there has been growing evidence that Advance care planning (ACP) benefits people with cognitive impairment nearing death, our understanding about this issue is still limited. This study examines whether cognitive impairment is associated with ACP engagement and end-of-life care preferences among older adults in the U.S. Using data from the 2012 National Health and Trends Study (n=1798, aged 65 to 101), we identified four levels of ACP engagement: None (28%), Informal ACP conversation only (12%), Formal ACP only (14%), and Both informal and formal ACP (46%). Older adults with None showed the highest prevalence of having cognitive impairment (17%), followed by those with Formal ACP only (15%) and the other two (6%, 6%). The results of Multinomial Logistic Regression showed that, compared to those without, respondents with cognitive impairment had 143% increased relative risk of having None (RR = 2.43, CI: 1.58-3.73) and 81% increased relative risk of completing Formal ACP only (RR = 1.81, CI: 1.11-2.95) relative to completing Both informal and formal ACP. In addition, respondents with None were more likely to prefer to receive all treatments available nearing death than those with any ACP engagement. Achieving high quality care at the end of life can be more challenging for older adults with cognitive impairment and their family caregivers due to the limited capacity. Although encouraged, informal ACP conversation with loved ones does not necessarily occur before the formal ACP, especially, for those with cognitive impairment. Therefore, they may merit more attention such as early ACP engagement.


2021 ◽  
pp. 003022282199770
Author(s):  
Janet Sopcheck ◽  
Ruth M. Tappen

Residents who are terminally ill often experience transfers to the emergency department resulting in hospitalizations, which may be potentially avoidable with treatment in the nursing home. This qualitative study explored the perspectives of 15 residents, 10 family members, and 20 nursing home staff regarding end-of-life care and the circumstances prompting resident transfers. Data analysis of participant interviews conducted January to May 2019 in a South Florida nursing home identified four themes related to transfer to the hospital: time left to live, when aggressive treatments would be unavailing, not knowing what the nursing home can do, and transfer decisions are situation-dependent. Study findings underscore the importance of increasing resident and family awareness of treatments available in the nursing home and person-centered advance care planning discussions. Further research should explore the reasons for residents’ and family members’ choice of aggressive therapies and their goals for care at the end of life.


Author(s):  
Kate L. M. Hinrichs ◽  
Cindy B. Woolverton ◽  
Jordana L. Meyerson

Individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) have shortened life expectancy with increased risk of developing comorbid medical illnesses. They might have difficulty accessing care and can be lost to follow-up due to complex socioeconomic factors, placing them at greater risk of dying from chronic or undiagnosed conditions. This, in combination with stigma associated with SMI, can result in lower quality end-of-life care. Interdisciplinary palliative care teams are in a unique position to lend assistance to those with SMI given their expertise in serious illness communication, values-based care, and psychosocial support. However, palliative care teams might be unfamiliar with the hallmark features of the various SMI diagnoses. Consequently, recognizing and managing exacerbations of SMI while delivering concurrent palliative or end-of-life care can feel challenging. The goal of this narrative review is to describe the benefits of providing palliative care to individuals with SMI with concrete suggestions for communication and use of recovery-oriented language in the treatment of individuals with SMI. The salient features of 3 SMI diagnoses—Bipolar Disorders, Major Depressive Disorder, and Schizophrenia—are outlined through case examples. Recommendations for working with individuals who have SMI and other life-limiting illness are provided, including strategies to effectively manage SMI exacerbations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 472-472
Author(s):  
Jenny McDonnell

Abstract While advance care planning (ACP) is recognized as a key facilitator of high-quality, goal-concordant end-of-life care, black Americans are less likely to participate in ACP than non-Hispanic whites (Carr 2011; Detering et al. 2010). There are divided explanations for why these disparities persist. Some scholars attribute racial disparities in end-of-life care to socioeconomic (SES) differences between black and white Americans citing blacks’ and whites’ differentiated access to, control over, and use of material resources (Wilson 1978; Yearby 2011). Others assert that health care preferences do not solely reflect lack of resources or health literacy, but that the larger social context frames care preferences differently across racial and ethnic groups in American society (Alegria et al. 2011; Sewell and Pingel forthcoming). By turning the analytical lens to class-privileged black Americans, I investigate whether racism overflows the margins of class disadvantage. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, I ran logistic regression and moderation models. I found that class-privileged blacks are less likely to engage in ACP than both high-SES and low-SES whites. The interaction of race and SES was negatively and significantly associated with ACP (OR=0.91; P<0.05), indicating that SES has a stronger effect on the probability of ACP among whites than among blacks. Predicted probabilities show that 51% of low-SES whites are likely to engage in ACP compared to 32% of high-SES blacks. These findings indicate that racialized disparities in ACP exist independent of SES, and that the effects of SES and race are intersectional rather than simply additive.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document