PILL series. Not that way: advance care planning

ABSTRACT

Advance care planning (ACP) is a process of discussion of healthcare decisions with regard to a patient's future health and personal care, should they become unable to make or communicate their own decisions in the future. ACP can be as simple as a chat about the patient's end-of-life wishes with their trusted loved ones, and may involve their doctors, organisations and trained facilitators. The process can be documented with available online resources, such as structured tools. Family physicians, with whom patients share unique therapeutic relationships, are in the best position to introduce and start the ACP conversation with their patients.