Dr Sue Neilson, Dr Duncan Randall and Dr Karen Shaw share their blog on education and training around advance care planning for Dying Matters Week.
The idea of advance care plans is something that some parents may struggle coming to terms with. Some may even associate it purely with the end-of-life care for their child. However it doesn’t have to mean this.
An advance care plan (ACP) is a way of documenting wishes and choices for a child’s care. It’s an open conversation between professionals and families about what might be possible, the plans for current and future treatment, ensuring a child’s comfort and including thoughts, hopes, ideas and planning for their end of their life.
Many professionals find it difficult to know when and how to start conversations with a family about ACP’s. A recent Marie Curie funded study, looking at the experiences of ACP’s with young people, parents and professionals, identified the value of ACP’s when caring for children, young people and their families. These findings are now being turned into action by a group of professionals from clinical, educational and charitable sectors. The group will look at the different education and training needs of those who make, use or share ACPs in the many places where children are cared for, and develop an education framework. The framework would align to the Children’s Palliative Care Education Standard Framework.