Overview
Advance care planning (ACP) isdefined as a continuous, dynamic process of reflection and communication between
individuals, their families and health care providers concerning the individual’s preferences for care at the end of life. ACP is vital to the quality of end-of-life care for all persons, regardless of cultural background, race, sex, or stage in the life course. With ACP there are ethical and cultural issues that need to be considered. For example, the decision of whether to receive care in the face of terminal illness is often viewed as an ethical dilemma. Research has found racial and ethnic disparities related to ACP and completion of advance directives. With these issues in mind, you may use a combination of your book, peer-reviewed journal articles, lived experiences, etc. to write a paper that addresses all of the following prompts. For clarity, consider utilizing subheadings for each prompt (a – f) and answering each prompt in order with its own body paragraph. a. Explain how the choice of whether or not to engage in ACP impacts local communities. b. Describe how the utilization of ACP is influenced by factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. c. Discuss how your understanding of ACP changed by participating in this course. Additionally, describe how concepts related to ACP connect to knowledge and experiences you have gained from your own academic field or other courses you have taken. d. Explain how the knowledge you have gained about ACP can be useful in your future. For example, you may think about experiences you may encounter in your personal or professional life that relate to ACP. e. Describe the ethical issues that we should consider and avoid if we were to increase the use of ACP at local, state, or national levels. f. Identify and describe two existing ACP tools either from the Fahner et al. article or other sources (e.g., course lectures or readings, web search). Be sure to include the following information in your description: What is the tool? (e.g., structured interview/conversation) How is it used? (e.g., one session/multiple) Who uses it? (e.g., population used with as well as the qualifications of the facilitator such as nurse/doctor). What is the overall goal of the tool.