Doctors approve of advance care planning, but feel underprepared to perform it: survey

Physicians overwhelmingly support the critical nature of advance care planning (ACP), yet many providers believe they lack the necessary infrastructure or resources to perform these end-of-life discussions with their patients.

 

That's what a new study from the John A. Hartford Foundation says. When asking primary care providers and specialists whether they're equipped to deliver ACP services -- which Medicare now covers -- the surveryors found that just 29% of providers have "a formal system for assessing patients' end-of-life wishes and goals of care."

 

Fewer doctors (24%) reported that their electronic health record (EHR) system showed whether a patient had current ACP plans, according to the study. To complicate the matter, providers that could see a patient's ACP plan in the EHR didn't always have access to the forms to assess their completeness or accuracy.

 

As far as remedial solutions, the study authors say "specific training in end-of-life discussions" has a strong impact on providers' willingess and ability to conduct them. Nearly half of trained physicians found ACP discussions "rewarding," vs. just 30% who weren't trained.

 

Check out the poll and study here: http://www.jhartfound.org/news-events/news/advance-care-planning-poll.