Advance directives or living wills: reflections of general practitioners and frail care coordinators in a small town in KwaZulu-Natal

Nurses' views regarding implementing advance care planning for older people: a systematic review and synthesis of qualitative studies

“…Nurses believed that preparing ADs could increase congruence concerning end‐of‐life care between patients and their families through discussion of patients’ preferences (Kelner et al . , Bull & Mash ). ADs were also beneficial for solving conflict among family members and helping them to make decisions.…”

“…Some nurses said that completing ADs could provide a direction for care, increase patients’ comfort with dying and assist in allocating health‐resources appropriately (Kelner et al . , Black , Bull & Mash ). Nurses suggested that ADs not only relieve feelings of guilt and grief for patients’ families, but also decrease moral burdens among health care teams (Bull & Mash , Gutierrez , Davidson et al .…”

General practice palliative care: patient and carer expectations, advance care plans and place of death—a systematic review

“…[48][49][50][51][52] South Africa was the exception. 53 One study compared UK GPs with Netherlands specialist Nursing Home physicians. 54 All studies used a descriptive design.…”

“…42 Despite these influences, patients want to discuss ACP with their GP but at a much earlier phase. 45 Other factors that influenced completion or implementation of ACP were: concerns about the legal standing 37 47 and currency of ACP documents; 53 confusion about terminology and systems, particularly with substitute decision making, 36 uncertainty around validity of the multiple forms of ACP available, 47 concerns about making binding decisions about the future given the uncertainties of disease trajectories, and lack of awareness that ACP could be modified. 37 46 47 Organisational and care setting factors influenced the completion of an ACP.…”

“…Bull & Mash, 2012, 53 South Africa Qualitative study. To explore the knowledge and attitudes of GPs and frail care co-ordinators on the use of living wills in Howick, KwaZulu-Nata.…”