Advance care planning at life milestones

Ruth Ludwick, Deb Bakerjian, Margarete L. Zalon, Sheila D. Melander, Janice D. Crist

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Much progress has been made in advance care planning (ACP), especially related to end of life and palliative care. These advances have moved thinking about ACP from a checklist approach to an upstream recognition that ACP is an iterative process that should begin early in adulthood and be revisited with each milestone or life-changing event. It is recognized that there are many stages and milestones in adult life that contribute to changing loci of responsibility and life goals. These changes impact how individuals view their lives, the complexity of health care, and the myriad of health conditions they may encounter. ACP discussions should routinely be started and reexamined at the time of key life events like starting a career or a marriage and not delayed until hospitalization, the occurrence of a serious accident, or the development of a catastrophic illness.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)451-457
Number of pages7
JournalNursing Outlook
Volume70
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - May 1 2022

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Inc.

Keywords

  • Advance care planning, Advance directives, Consensus, Life milestones, Nursing
  • Policy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Nursing

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