It is difficult to start planning and thinking about organising your future care, health and wishes. Here you can find useful information about advance care planning:
What is advance care planning?
Advance care planning (ACP) is about thinking ahead - from where you are now, through the years to come, to the end of your life. It involves having brave conversations, organising your wishes, and making sure they are recorded and shared with the right people.
ACP can cover a few key issues or be more detailed. These can relate to your health and care but also to your finances and assets.
When should I think about advance care planning?
It is good to think about advance care planning at any time, but particularly after a diagnosis, a change in your health, or a hospital admission.
These are good times to start or to review a plan.
What issues does advance care planning include?
- Define and share what really matters to you. If a health decision needs to be made in the future, and if you are not well enough to make the decision yourself, your loved ones or Attorneys will be consulted. They can tell the professionals what matters most to you. The medical decision that best matches your values and wishes can then be made
- Consider who would act on your behalf and whether you would like to make a lasting power of attorney
- Make space for the process to continue. This means that planning ahead isn't an event, it's a process. It's a conversation to begin, put aside, pick up again and review
What resources can help me to get started?
There are several excellent resources to help simplify the planning process:
- MyWishes is an online tool which supports people on a range of issues including writing a will, planning for healthcare and even leaving messages for loved ones. There are facilities to share your whole plan or just some of your wishes with family and friends
- An alternative online planning ahead tool from Hospice UK supports people to think about different options for care. It takes approximately 15 minutes to complete online. You can then download or print your answers to share with those close to you
- Marie Curie have produced a simple one page planning checklist (see downloads)
What are the key documents?
- Lasting power of attorney
- A will
- A statement of wishes captures your wishes about what matters and will help your loved ones make decisions on your behalf in the future. This isn't legally binding and you can change your mind at any time
- An advance decision to refuse treatment (ADRT) is a legally binding document that allows you to state that certain treatments would be unacceptable in the future
How can I make sure that health professionals involved in my care know what my wishes are?
The Mid & South Essex Electronic Palliative Care Coordination System (EPaCCS) registers enable clear visibility of your decisions and priorities about the kind of care you wish to receive in the future and your preference for place of care.
It is held as part of the usual records system and can be accessed securely only by staff responsible for your care, such as your GP, out of hours NHS 111 GPs and clinicians, community nursing and therapist teams, community mental health/dementia teams, ambulance teams, hospital staff, hospices.
Only professionals delivering care to you can access it from your usual records so you can be confident that everyone looking after you knows what care you want.
The MSE Advance Care Planning Information Guide (see downloads) has more comprehensive information about EPaCCS in mid and south essex.