Advance Care Planning
Advance Care Planning involves making decisions now about your future care. Health and social care professionals, such as doctors or nurses, can help you understand the options and what sort of care might be needed in the future. It can be helpful to discuss these options with your loved ones, your family or friends.
During these discussions you may choose to express some views, preferences and wishes about your future care so that these can be taken into account if you were unable to make your own decisions at some point in the future. This process will enable you to communicate your wishes to all involved in your care.
Who is Advance Care Planning for?
Advance Care Planning generally happens if someone has a serious illness, but you can plan ahead for your future treatment and care at any time in your life.
If you’ve been diagnosed with a serious illness then someone involved in your care, such as such as your doctor or nurse, might start a conversation with you about Advance Care Planning. However, you don’t have to wait for someone else to talk to you about your wishes; you can ask them about it at any time.
Advance Care Planning is a voluntary process, so you don’t have to take any steps to plan in advance unless you wish to do so.
However, talking about and recording your wishes in advance will mean that they are more likely to be known by others and followed if you are unable to make decisions for yourself.
If the individual does not have capacity to make decisions about their future care for themselves then family members will be consulted about what care their loved one may want if they could make their wishes known.
Where to go for support?
Macmillan Cancer Support on Advance Care Planning
Macmillan Cancer Support on planning ahead.
If you live in Barking and Dagenham, Havering or Redbridge you can access more information by downloading the BHRUT Advance Care Planning leaflet.
Drop-in sessions
Would you like to discuss your future? Do you have any concerns about end-of-life care planning?
Advance Care Planning improves care and quality of life, while increasing satisfaction with the healthcare system and reducing stress, anxiety and depression in patients, their caregivers and loved ones. Talking now can make life better at the end.
Come along for an informal chat on the second Wednesday of every month from 10am-1pm in the Oncology VERT room at Queen’s Hospital, Rom Valley Way Romford Essex RM7 0AG.
For one-to-one sessions contact Tiffany on 01708 503526