A guide to Advance Care Planning

Advance Care Planning is the discussions you have with healthcare professionals, family and friends about what future treatment and care you would like to receive.

What Advance Care Planning means is that you think ahead and record your wishes, giving you more control over the later stages of your life and the care you will receive.

Advance care planning aims to improve the care people receive towards the end of their lives to ensure their needs are met, and that they live as well as possible and are as comfortable as possible when the time comes.

Benefits of advance care planning

There may come a time when you are unable to communicate your wishes to the people who look after you. Planning in advance and making decisions about your care ahead of time not only makes it more likely that you will be cared for the way you want to, but also helps your loved ones and those who look after you to understand what matters to you, now and in the future.

This is the benefit of Advance Care Planning, because if your family and others involved in your care are aware of how you want to be cared for, it will make it easier for them to make decisions in the future that are in your best interests.

What is included in advance care planning?

The process of Advance care planning can include anything related to your future care and what is important to you. The aim is to help you to live as well as possible and die as well as possible regardless of where you choose to do so, such as in a care home or at home.

This could include advance decisions to refuse treatments (ADRT), such as refusing life-sustaining treatment, granting a loved one Power of Attorney to ensure someone you trust will make decisions for you, or where you prefer to be looked after during your final moments, for example in a care home.

When someone is nearing end of life, it is always a stressful time for everyone involved. Thinking about your end of life care in advance can help to reduce some of the worry and anxiety.

Advance care planning can include:

• Deciding where you would like to be looked after, including in your final moments
• What care and treatment you would like
• What care and treatment you do not want to receive
• Who should be involved in making decisions for you in the future
• Discussing your spiritual and religious beliefs

As mentioned above, Advance Care Planning can include any thoughts you have about your future care with the goal of making your wishes clear, so that your loved ones, doctors and other healthcare professionals can meet your needs and preferences.

It can be hard to know what type of care you may need in the future, which is why it can be helpful to discuss the options with your healthcare professionals. This will help you to better understand possible future challenges and what treatments you may be recommended.

It is important to note that you do not have to make an advance care plan, but if you wish to do so, you should be supported.

Making an advance care plan 

Advance care planning is made in five steps:

• Thinking about your future, what is important to you and what you want to happen
• Talk to your family and friends about your thoughts and appoint a Power of Attorney in case you can no longer speak for yourself
• Record your thoughts and wishes on an advance care plan form
• Discuss the plans and options with professionals involved in your care
• Share the information with people close to you and others who need to know

The first thing to do is to think about how you would like your future care to look like. The second step is to discuss your thoughts with family, friends and healthcare professionals.

They will be able to provide valuable support and give suggestions and perhaps make you think about things that you had not thought of. However, you should never feel pressured to include anything in your advance care plan that you are not comfortable with.

Advance care plan form

After you have discussed your wishes with the people around you, it is a good idea to write everything down so that it can be recorded. Your doctor or other healthcare professionals will be able to provide you with an advance care plan form for you to fill in.

Once you have filled in the document, give copies to those involved in your care as well as your family and friends. This will make it easier for them to follow your wishes if you are unable to speak for yourself.

Doctors and nurses will as far as possible follow your advance care plan, but it is not legally binding and there may be situations in which your wishes may not be followed.

If you would like to refuse certain treatments and make sure healthcare professionals will follow your wishes, such as refusing CPR, you have to include an advance decision to refuse treatment (ADRT) in your advance care plan.

An ADRT is only used if you for any reason is unable to make decisions about your own treatment and you have to write it down in a specific way. To learn more about what an ADRT is, read our comprehensive guide to making a Living Will.