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Patients’ and families’ receptivity to discussions about future healthcare
Valley Cancer Pain Treatment Center, Scottsdale, AZ
Advance directives (ADs) are an important but often neglected issue in healthcare. By preparing an AD, patients can still participate in their medical decisions even if they are incapacitated, thus sparing family members this difficult task. The goals of this study were to determine whether patients were open to being approached about ADs, to educate patients, and to promote awareness about end-of-life healthcare decisions. Over the course of a 7-week study period, 123 patients were approached in a personal interview about their knowledge of ADs while being seen at the Valley Cancer Pain Treatment Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. At the onset of the study, 28 of 123 patients had ADs. This study prompted an additional 37 patients (30%) to prepare an AD so that 65 patients (53%) had an AD at the conclusion of the study. A follow-up survey revealed that patients were comforted by having these issues addressed in a physician’s office.
| Commun Oncol 2005;2:446–451 | full text |  116 kb |