Impact of Advanced Care Planning in the Clinical Setting

Extremely often when patients move towards the end of their lives, important questions arise as to continuation of certain medical treatments. Patients who have Advanced Care Plans (ACPs, living wills etc.) provide keen insight as to what the patient’s desire would be in certain medical situations. Without such documentation family members are often required to make critical decisions for their loved ones under stressful conditions. Ethics Consults are often called in such situations to work with family members to clarify and aid in these difficult decisions. There are times when, due to guilt or fear on the family’s part, decisions are often delayed or made contrary to what is best for the patients. This webinar will provide information on ACPs, how to encourage this practice, and the implications of failure to have good information of patient’s needs at the EOL. The webinar will include case studies of incidents that have caused difficulties at the EOL and unnecessary medical support to patients at the EOL.