BC Creates Advance Care Planning Guide

I would be interested in your feedback on this new document for Advance Care Planning in BC.

Canada's Health Care System Gets Low Grade from Sicker Canadians

It seems that the sicker you are, the more inclined you are to give Canada's health care system a a failing grade. Read more in this report from the Health Council of Canada.

Alberta and Personal Health Directives

For my Alberta friends - here is a link to a sample "Personal Health Directive," along with instructions on how to use the form.
Check out an array of Advance Care Planning Resources for Alberta here.

Engage with Grace - A Critical Family Conversation

Watch this 10 minute video - you will be inspired to have conversations about your wishes for future care.


Check out the "Engage with Grace" website.

Are Canadians Ready to Talk About the Cost of Dying?

The Globe and Mail is doing a series of articles on end-of-life.
Today's article, "Are Canadians Ready to Talk about the Cost of Dying?" is worth reading.

Video Link - Planning Care for the Final Days

Watch this video as the BBC highlights the Respecting Choices® program at Gundersen Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Be prepared for a brief ad, not related to the topic, just prior to the actual news clip from the BBC.

Respecting Choices and Disease-Specific Advance Care Planning

Respecting Choices Disease-Specific Advance Care Planning: The Next Steps for Patients with Chronic Progressive Illness

Respecting Choices has a long history of developing advance care planning (ACP) programs that produce successful outcomes. For the past several years, they have been testing and refining an approach to ACP for patients with chronic, progressive illness called “Disease Specific - Advance Care Planning” (DS-ACP). Through research and clinical implementation, they have developed the expertise and strategies for successful replication.

Why is Disease Specific ACP Important?

• Millions of people live with—and eventually die from—a variety of chronic illnesses, experiencing sudden but predictable complications for which they are unprepared.
• Only one-third of patients with chronic, progressive illness have completed some type of written advance directive.
• Even when written plans are created and available, they are often not helpful because chosen healthcare agents are not prepared to make specific decisions (often choosing more aggressive treatment than their loved ones would choose) and instructions provided are too vague or ambiguous to guide clinical decision making when needed).
• The 2008 Dartmouth Atlas report identifies wide variability in care and related costs of patients with chronic, progressive illness in the last two years of life. This raises the concern that some patients might be receiving more interventions than they want or can benefit from.
• Patients with chronic, progressive illness report a need for information on treatment survival and outcomes in order to make informed healthcare choices. They also express a desire for information about treatment options, benefits, and burdens.
• The 2008 Report to Congress calls for a shift from advance directive completion to patient-centred communication strategies that assist patients in making informed healthcare decisions.

Find out more about Disease Specific ACP on the Respecting Choices website. Contact me or Matthew Isbell at the Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation: 800.362.9567  (Ext. 54747)