New advance care planning guide for healthcare professionals

Gold Coast Primary Health Network (GCPHN) has developed a simple guide, Planning Your Future Care Today, with easy-to-understand information about advance care planning.

This guide can be used by healthcare professionals to assist their patients and discuss the necessity of having a plan for their future healthcare, especially for those with an advanced chronic illness or a life limiting illness.

This booklet has helped people think about what life would look like if they became ill or had an accident and could no longer care or speak for themselves. It helps them to understand what they can do to plan for their future healthcare needs and covers a range of topics including advance care planning options, enduring power of attorney, advance health directives and statement of choices.

Thinking about advance care planning was something that one of our local consumers, Sandra Johnston, had never considered, until she had complications from surgery.

“I ended up in ICU for a week and in hospital for six weeks,” Sandra said. “While in ICU, I couldn’t speak and couldn’t breathe – there was nothing I could do for myself. I prayed to die it was so horrible. It made me think then, that if I ended up in a body that couldn’t communicate with anyone, that keeping me alive would be so much worse for me than death, and my family needed to know how I felt.”

And this isn’t the only time Sandra has faced her own mortality, after being diagnosed with heart disease, a brain tumour and then breast cancer.

She now runs the Women’s Cancer Support Gold Coast – a support group for women who have been diagnosed with cancer, where they share information, emotional and physical support online and in person, with social and educational events, empowering women to navigate their own journey to achieve their best outcome.

She encourages everyone to upload their advance care planning documents to their My Health Record, so they can be easily accessed by doctors in the event of an emergency or an unexpected diagnosis.

Doctors and health professionals play an important part in the process and can be the ones to instigate initial discussions with their patients about advance care plans. Patients often trust and will look to their healthcare professional for this type of advice, so it is important to have these types of resources on hand to assist with these types of conversations.

Gold Coast resident, Elizabeth McCray, says advance care planning is something that everyone should think about once they turn 18. All members of her family have directives in place, and she believes it’s important their care needs are discussed as a group.

“None of us know what will happen tomorrow which is why our family have them in place,” Elizabeth said. “Someone could end up in a vegetative state after an accident. It is less stressful for families going through this situation, no matter what their ages, if they know what their loved one’s wishes are around being kept on life support, donating their organs, funeral arrangements, and religious services.”

Noela Baglot worked as a nurse for 50 years and said she had seen situations that were very stressful for families. She believes it’s important to plan early.

“One of the important things mentioned in this recently developed guide, is about planning your future healthcare needs, while you have the mental capacity, rather than leaving it too late,” she said. “When completing the forms, talk to your GP, as they can explain your options in detail and make sure to have those conversations with your family.”

Justice of the Peace David Peace said he has had friends who haven’t had directives in place, and have been placed in care, away from their support networks.

“This was a very distressing situation for all of us, and I just tell people, don’t leave it too late. We plan many aspects of lives; this is just another step.”

I strongly encourage health professionals to use this guide as a patient resource and discussion starter. You can find the Planning Your Future Care Today guide online and as a downloadable resource at: www.gcphn.org.au/acp

Matt Carrodus
CEO | GCPHN

This article was distributed in the April/May 2022 edition of Doctor Magazine.