Advance care planning in end of life care

Advance Care Planning is an essential part of the new NHS National Programme on End of Life Care, aiming to improve the chances of 'a good death' by discussing and planning how this might be managed. This book helps readers explore a wide range of issues and practicalities in providing Advance Care Planning (ACP) for their patients nearing the end of life. Advance Care Planning in End of Life Care takes a comprehensive look at the subject of ACP, frames the purpose, process and outcomes and includes contributions from experts from around the world. It is an invaluable resource for all clinicians involved in Advance Care Planning and End of Life Care, and will also be of interest to GPs and those working in care/nursing homes and PCTs.

Section 1 - Introduction to Advance Care Planning (ACP) - Why do it?. 1. Overview and introduction to Advance Care Planning. 2. Advance Care Planning for the end of life: an overview. 3. Listening to the patient's voice. 4. Advance Care Planning for older people. 5. Spiritual aspects of Advance Care Planning. 6. Advance Care Planning: politically correct, but ethically sound?. Section 2 - Context in the UK. 7. Advance Care Planning for the end of life. 8. he Implications of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 for Advance Care Planning and decision making. 9. Advance Decisions to Refuse Treatment (ADRT). 10. The tough questions - Do Not Attempt Resuscitation (DNAR) discussions. Section 3 - The UK Experience of ACP - what's happening now. 11. Preferred priorities for care - An Advance Care Planning process. 12. Experience of use of Advance Care Planning (ACP) in care homes. 13. Advance Care Planning in the community. 14. ACP in Hospice and Specialist Palliative Care. 15. Advanced Care Planning - Thinking Ahead for Parents and Children. 16. Advance Care Planning (ACP) for people who do not have capacity. Section 4 - International Experience of ACP - What can we learn from other countries?. 17. Advance directives and Advance Care Planning: the US experience. 18. A common sense guide to improving Advance Care Planning - from theory to practice. 19. Advance Care Planning in Canada: past experience and current strategies. 20. The evolution of Advance Care Planning in Australia with a focus on hospital care. 21. Advance Care Planning discussions in Australia - the development of clinical practice guidelines. 22. Living and dying in style: Australia - an example of ACP in action. Section 5 - Practicalities and Getting Going. 23. Communication skills and Advance Care Planning. 24. Working with local commissioners to deliver advanced care planning. Appendix 1 - Useful websites and resources. Appendix 2 - Aids to communication. Appendix 3 - Guidance and Useful ACP Tools.

Professor Keri Thomas is National Clinical Lead of the Gold Standards Framework Centre, (www.goldstandardsframework.nhs.uk ) based in the West Midlands, which focuses on developing practical means to enable top quality care for all people nearing the end of life. As a practicing GP working in hospices for over 20 years, and a Macmillan GP for 6 years, she was the originator of the Gold Standards Framework (GSF) for primary care in 2001 and in care homes in 2004, and continues to lead work in this country. She is Hon. Professor of End of Life Care at University of Birmingham and works with the newly developed charity Omega, the National Association for End of Life Care in supporting carers, use of ADA audit tool and other areas. She is author of 'Caring for the Dying at Home' has written and lectured extensively in the UK and abroad on community palliative care and end of life care, and has been involved in various national strategic and policy groups. Dr Ben Lobo is National Clinical Lead for Advance Decisions to Refuse Treatment and Chair of the ADRT Project Team (based in the East Midlands) which was funded to provide guidance, website (ADRTNHS.co.uk) and specialist training for health and social care professionals. Ben actively promotes Advance Care Planning in his community role a Medical Director and Consultant Geriatrician He continues to contribute to a number of regional and national initiatives and provides expert support to a number of national organisations and charities including the Motor Neuron Disease Association, Neurological Alliance, and British Heart Foundation. Ben is involved with research and publishing. Ben qualified at Nottingham University in 1993 and has held posts in Nottingham, Leicester and Oxford hospitals. He has specialist training in Acute / General and Geriatric Medicine as well as advanced skills in Diagnostic Imaging and Cardiology.

I like how the book is formatted in a way that makes it easy to read either from cover to cover or by dipping in and out... Overall, the book will be valuable not only to clinicians working in the field of end -of-life care but also to social workers, postgraduate students, patients, carers, and even family members. The use of interesting case studies provides a useful balance, with content that liberates the reader to think outside the box.