Advance Care Planning

Have you ever thought about what would happen if you or a relative became seriously ill or disabled?

Regrettably we often fail to address these issues until it is too late to do anything about them.

For example, if you (or a relative) lost the ability to make decisions about your finances or health – do you know what would happen?

Another situation is resuscitation – lots of people have quite clear views that, when the time comes, they want to be allowed ‘to go naturally’ – however if this not clearly documented (in the form of an ‘allow natural death’ form) then resuscitation will always be attempted.

These are difficult subjects to think about for many of us and also to talk about, and that is both completely understandably and completely acceptable.

If however you do want to think about this, then I’ve listed some areas to consider, and some helpful links too.

Here at the Wellbridge Practice, all of our GP’s are committed to providing the best possible care, and if you would like to discuss any of these areas in more detail, then please make a routine appointment to do so.

Lasting power of attorney

This is a legal document that lets you nominate one (or more) people to make financial or health decisions for you, if you loose the ability to do so. This is particularly relevant for people who develop dementia, but can apply in other situations too.

This has to be completed whilst you still have the ‘capacity’ to do so. So it’s never too early to think about it. And remember, no matter how early you make this, the people you nominate can only make decisions for you when/if you no longer can.

https://www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney/overview

 ‘Allow a natural death’

If you have a clear view that you would not want resuscitation to be attempted, then you can discuss this with your GP, who can complete the relevant form.

Please remember that making a decision to allow a natural death does NOT mean that your regular medical treatment will stop. Your GP will continue to ensure that you get the highest level of care we always strive to deliver, regardless of this decision.

For an overview of advance care planning and all it entails

http://www.nhs.uk/planners/end-of-life-care/documents/planning-for-your-future-care.pdf