scholarly journals ATTITUDES TOWARD AND PREFERENCE FOR ADVANCE CARE PLANNING AMONG OLDER KOREAN AMERICANS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S407-S407
Author(s):  
Michin Hong ◽  
Hyunjun Noh ◽  
Kyeongmo Kim

Abstract Advance care planning (ACP), referring to a decision-making process for end-of-life (EOL) care in advance, is critical in ensuring satisfaction with care and quality of life among patients and caregivers at the EOL. However, Korean Americans consistently report lower levels of ACP engagement compared to whites, indicating their potential vulnerability at the EOL. To gain insight into strategies to address the disparity, this qualitative study explored attitudes toward and preference for ACP among older Korean Americans. We conducted three focus group interviews with 31 older Korean Americans. Through iterative data analysis process, four themes emerged: 1) moderate levels of awareness of and prior experiences with ACP: 2) favorable attitudes toward ACP, while concerned about non-compliance by children: 3) preference for natural dying without life prolonging treatments and pain: and 4) preference for physician-initiated ACP. Our findings suggest the necessity of culturally tailored approaches to promote ACP for this population.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 66-66
Author(s):  
Elise Abken ◽  
Alexis Bender ◽  
Ann Vandenberg ◽  
Candace Kemp ◽  
Molly Perkins

Abstract Assisted living (AL) communities are increasingly home to frail, chronically ill older adults who remain until death. State laws mandate that AL facilities request copies of any advance care planning documents residents have and make forms available upon request. Using secondary data from a larger study funded by the National Institute on Aging (R01AG047408) that focuses on end-of-life (EOL) care in AL, this project investigated barriers and facilitators to conducting advance care planning in AL. Data included in-depth interviews (of 86 minute average length) with 20 administrators from 7 facilities around the Atlanta metropolitan area and aggregate data collected from each facility regarding facility, staff, and resident characteristics. Findings from thematic analysis of qualitative data showed that key barriers to planning in AL included lack of staff training and reluctance among administrators and families to discuss advance care planning and EOL care. Important facilitators included periodic follow-up discussions of residents’ wishes, often during care plan meetings, educating families about the importance of planning, and external support for staff training and family education from agencies such as hospice and home health. Three study facilities exceeded state requirements to request and store documents by systematically encouraging residents to complete documentation. These facilities, whose administrators discuss advance care planning and residents’ EOL wishes with residents and families during regular care plan meetings, were more likely to have planning documents on file, demonstrating the potential of long-term care communities, such as AL, to successfully promote advance care planning among residents and their family members.


Author(s):  
Lente L. Kroon ◽  
◽  
Janneke van Roij ◽  
Ida J. Korfage ◽  
An K. L. Reyners ◽  
...  

Abstract Purpose Advance Care Planning (ACP) is positively associated with the quality of care, but its impact on emotional functioning is ambiguous. This study investigated the association between perceptions of ACP involvement and emotional functioning in patients with advanced cancer. Methods This study analyzed baseline data of 1,001 patients of the eQuiPe study, a prospective, longitudinal, multicenter, observational study on quality of care and quality of life in patients with advanced cancer in the Netherlands. Patients with metastatic solid cancer were asked to participate between November 2017 and January 2020. Patients’ perceptions of ACP involvement were measured by three self-administered statements. Emotional functioning was measured by the EORTC-QLQ-C30. A linear multivariable regression analysis was performed while taking gender, age, migrant background, education, marital status, and symptom burden into account. Results The majority of patients (87%) reported that they were as much involved as they wanted to be in decisions about their future medical treatment and care. Most patients felt that their relatives (81%) and physicians (75%) were familiar with their preferences for future medical treatment and care. A positive association was found between patients’ perceptions of ACP involvement and their emotional functioning (b=0.162, p<0.001, 95%CI[0.095;0.229]) while controlling for relevant confounders. Conclusions Perceptions of involvement in ACP are positively associated with emotional functioning in patients with advanced cancer. Future studies are needed to further investigate the effect of ACP on emotional functioning. Trial registration number NTR6584 Date of registration: 30 June 2017 Implications for Cancer Survivors Patients’ emotional functioning might improve from routine discussions regarding goals of future care. Therefore, integration of ACP into palliative might be promising.


2020 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2020-002520
Author(s):  
Yung-Feng Yen ◽  
Ya-Ling Lee ◽  
Hsiao-Yun Hu ◽  
Wen-Jung Sun ◽  
Ming-Chung Ko ◽  
...  

ObjectiveEvidence is mixed regarding the impact of advance care planning (ACP) on place of death. This cohort study investigated the effect of ACP programmes on place of death and utilisation of life-sustaining treatments for patients during end-of-life (EOL) care.MethodsThis prospective cohort study identified deceased patients between 2015 and 2016 at Taipei City Hospital. ACP was determined by patients’ medical records and defined as a process to discuss patients’ preferences with respect to EOL treatments and place of death. Place of death included hospital or home death. Stepwise logistic regression determined the association of ACP with place of death and utilisation of life-sustaining treatments during EOL care.ResultsOf the 3196 deceased patients, the overall mean age was 78.6 years, and 46.5% of the subjects had an ACP communication with healthcare providers before death. During the study follow-up period, 166 individuals died at home, including 98 (6.59%) patients with ACP and 68 (3.98%) patients without ACP. After adjusting for sociodemographic factors and comorbidities, patients with ACP were more likely to die at home during EOL care (adjusted OR (AOR)=1.71, 95% CI 1.24 to 2.35). Moreover, patients with ACP were less likely to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (AOR 0.36, 95% CI 0.25 to 0.51) as well as intubation and mechanical ventilation support (AOR 0.54, 95% CI 0.44 to 0.67) during the last 3 months of life.ConclusionPatients with ACP were more likely to die at home and less likely to receive life-sustaining treatments during EOL care.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. e000485
Author(s):  
Nina Elisabeth Hjorth ◽  
Margrethe Aase Schaufel ◽  
Katrin Ruth Sigurdardottir ◽  
Dagny R Faksvåg Haugen

Background and aimsAdvance care planning (ACP) is communication about wishes and preferences for end-of-life care. ACP is not routinely used in any Norwegian hospitals. We performed a pilot study (2014–2017) introducing ACP on a thoracic medicine ward in Norway. The aims of this study were to explore which topics patients discussed during ACP conversations and to assess how patients, relatives and clinicians experienced the acceptability and feasibility of performing ACP.MethodsConversations were led by a study nurse or physician using a semistructured guide, encouraging patients to talk freely. Each conversation was summarised in a report in the patient’s medical record. At the end of the pilot period, clinicians discussed their experiences in focus group interviews. Reports and transcribed interviews were analysed using systematic text condensation.ResultsFifty-one patients participated in ACP conversations (41–86 years; 9 COPD, 41 lung cancer, 1 lung fibrosis; 11 women); 18 were accompanied by a relative. Four themes emerged: (1) disturbing symptoms, (2) existential topics, (3) care planning and (4) important relationships. All participants appreciated the conversations. Clinicians (1 physician and 7 nurses) participated in two focus group interviews. Reports from ACP conversations revealed patient values previously unknown to clinicians; important information was passed on to primary care. Fearing they would deprive patients of hope, clinicians acted as gatekeepers for recruitment. Although they reported barriers during recruitment, many clinicians saw ACP as pertinent and called for time and skills to integrate it into their daily clinical practice.ConclusionsPatients, relatives and clinicians showed a positive attitude towards ACP. Focusing on present and future symptom control may be an acceptable way to introduce ACP. Important aspects for implementing ACP in this patient group are management support, education, training, feasible routines and allocated time to perform the conversations.


Author(s):  
Fu-Ming Chiang ◽  
Jyh-Gang Hsieh ◽  
Sheng-Yu Fan ◽  
Ying-Wei Wang ◽  
Shu-Chen Wang

The aging of the Taiwanese population has become a major issue. Previous research has focused on the burden and stress faced by caregivers, but has not explored how the experience of these caregivers influences decisions of advance care planning (ACP). Semi-structured and in-depth interviews were conducted. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify important themes. Five themes and fourteen sub-themes were identified: (1) Past experiences: patient wishes, professional recommendations, and expectation about disease progress; (2) Impact of care on family members: positive affirmation, open-minded life, social isolation and health effects, and financial and life planning effects; (3) Attitude toward life: not forcing to stay, and not becoming a burden, (4) Expected proxy dilemmas: torment between doing or not, seeing the extension of suffering and toil, and remorse and self-blame; (5) Expectation of end of life (EOL) care: caregiver’s experience and EOL care decisions, and practicality of EOL decision making. After making multiple medical decisions for their disabled relatives, caregivers are able to calmly face their own medical decisions, and “not becoming a burden” is their primary consideration. It’s suggested that implementation of shared decision-making on medical care for patients with chronic disability will not only improve the quality of their medical care but also reduce the development of remorse and guilty feelings of caregivers after making medical decisions.


2005 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. 2012-2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elsbeth Voogt ◽  
Agnes van der Heide ◽  
Judith A.C. Rietjens ◽  
Anna F. van Leeuwen ◽  
Adriaan P. Visser ◽  
...  

Purpose When cancer has advanced to a stage in which cure becomes unlikely, patients may have to consider the aim of further treatment. We studied the relationship of patients' attitudes toward treatment with advance care planning and the development of these attitudes after diagnosis of incurable cancer. Patients and Methods Patients with incurable cancer were interviewed and asked to fill out a written questionnaire about their attitudes concerning life-prolonging treatment and end-of-life decision making. These questions were repeated after 6 and 12 months. Results One hundred twenty-two patients (mean age, 64 years; standard deviation, 10.5 years; 53% women) participated in the study. Patients' attitudes toward treatment could be categorized into the following three different profiles: striving for quality of life, striving for length of life, and no clear preference. Patients who were older, more tired, or had less positive feelings and patients who had more often taken initiatives to engage in advance care planning were more inclined to strive for quality of life than others. Patients with a history of cancer of less than 6 months were more inclined to prefer life prolongation than patients with a longer history of cancer. During follow-up, no changes in attitudes toward treatment were found, except for patients with a short history of cancer in whom the inclination to strive for length decreased. Conclusion Patients who appreciate advance care planning were more inclined to strive for quality of life than other patients. Shortly after the diagnosis of cancer, patients typically seem to prefer life-prolonging treatment, whereas quality of life becomes more important when death is nearing.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 519-524
Author(s):  
Jolien J Glaudemans ◽  
Dick L Willems ◽  
Jan Wind ◽  
Bregje D Onwuteaka Philipsen

Abstract Background Using advance care planning (ACP) to anticipate future decisions can increase compliance with people’s end-of-life wishes, decrease inappropriate life-sustaining treatment and reduce stress, anxiety and depression. Despite this, only a minority of older people engage in ACP, partly because care professionals lack knowledge of approaches towards ACP with older people and their families. Objective To explore older people’s and their families’ experiences with ACP in primary care. Methods We conducted qualitative, semi-structured, face-to-face interviews with 22 older people (aged &gt;70 years, v/m: 11/11), with experience in ACP, and eight of their family members (aged 40–79 years, f/m: 7/1). Transcripts were inductively analysed using a grounded theory approach. Results We distinguished three main themes. (i) Openness and trust: Respondents were more open to ACP if they wanted to prevent specific future situations and less open if they lacked trust or had negative thoughts regarding general practitioners’ (GPs’) time for and interest in ACP. Engaging in ACP appeared to increase trust. (ii) Timing and topics: ACP was not initiated too early. Quality of ACP seemed to improve if respondents’ views on their current life and future, a few specific future care scenarios and expectations and responsibilities regarding ACP were discussed. (iii) Roles of family: Quality of ACP appeared to improve if family was involved in ACP. Conclusions Quality and accessibility of ACP may improve if GPs and nurses involve family, explain GPs’ interest in ACP and discuss future situations older people may want to prevent, and views on their current life and future.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 874-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus Schichtel ◽  
Bee Wee ◽  
Rafael Perera ◽  
Igho Onakpoya

Abstract Background Advance care planning is widely advocated to improve outcomes in end-of-life care for patients suffering from heart failure. But until now, there has been no systematic evaluation of the impact of advance care planning (ACP) on clinical outcomes. Our aim was to determine the effect of ACP in heart failure through a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Methods We searched CINAHL, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Database of Systematic Reviews, Embase, ERIC, Ovid MEDLINE, Science Citation Index and PsycINFO (inception to July 2018). We selected RCTs including adult patients with heart failure treated in a hospital, hospice or community setting. Three reviewers independently screened studies, extracted data, assessed the risk of bias (Cochrane risk of bias tool) and evaluated the quality of evidence (GRADE tool) and analysed interventions according to the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR). We calculated standardized mean differences (SMD) in random effects models for pooled effects using the generic inverse variance method. Results Fourteen RCTs including 2924 participants met all of the inclusion criteria. There was a moderate effect in favour of ACP for quality of life (SMD, 0.38; 95% CI [0.09 to 0.68]), patients’ satisfaction with end-of-life care (SMD, 0.39; 95% CI [0.14 to 0.64]) and the quality of end-of-life communication (SMD, 0.29; 95% CI [0.17 to 0.42]) for patients suffering from heart failure. ACP seemed most effective if it was introduced at significant milestones in a patient’s disease trajectory, included family members, involved follow-up appointments and considered ethnic preferences. Several sensitivity analyses confirmed the statistically significant direction of effect. Heterogeneity was mainly due to different study settings, length of follow-up periods and compositions of ACP. Conclusions ACP improved quality of life, patient satisfaction with end-of-life care and the quality of end-of-life communication for patients suffering from heart failure and could be most effective when the right timing, follow-up and involvement of important others was considered.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. e44-e51
Author(s):  
Cameron Kiersch ◽  
Teddie Potter

The complexities surrounding the dying process may distort rational decision-making and impact care at the end of life. Advance care planning, which focuses on identifying the individual's definition of quality of life, holds great potential to provide clarity at the end of life. Currently, young adults are not the intended audience for advance care planning. A quality improvement project engaged 36 college-age adults in structured group advance care planning discussions and evaluated the perceived value of a self-recorded advance directive. Findings from a pre- and postintervention survey suggested that young adults welcomed a conversation about end-of-life care; they wished for more information and expressed that a video-recorded advance directive stimulated thoughts about their own definition of quality of life. Participants' improved self-perception of comfort, confidence, certainty, and knowledge regarding the advance care planning process and end-of-life care indicated young adults may be a willing and eager population for the expansion of advance care planning. In addition to directing advance care planning to a younger audience, a personal video-recorded advance directive may complement the current advance care planning process and aid individuals in defining their quality of life.


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