Abstract
An electronic survey was used to assess the views of a diverse nationwide cohort of health care professionals regarding advance care planning and end-of-life care. A total of 645 responses were received. If diagnosed with a serious incurable illness with limited life expectancy, 97% would want to discuss their prognosis, 74% would refuse cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and 72% favored supportive/comfort care to more aggressive life-prolonging treatments. However, prognosis was thought to be discussed with only 52% of such patients, and just 5% thought doctors were either very or extremely successful at explaining advanced life-sustaining treatments to patients. Greater than 90% believed these discussions should best occur when a patient is thought to have one or more years to live and 80% thought they are best initiated in the outpatient setting.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 802-809 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 1 2015 |
| Externally published | Yes |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Medicine
Keywords
- advance care planning
- advance medical planning
- attitude to death
- cancer
- end-of-life care
- oncology
- palliative care
- prognosis