SHARING Choices: A Pilot Study to Engage Family in Advance Care Planning of Older Adults With and Without Cognitive Impairment in the Primary Care Context.

contextFew advance care planning (ACP) interventions proactively engage family or address the needs of older adults with and without cognitive impairment in the primary care context.

objectivesTo pilot a multicomponent intervention involving: an introductory letter describing a new clinic initiative and inviting patients to complete a patient-family pre-visit agenda-setting checklist, share their electronic health information with family, and talk about their wishes for future care with a trained ACP facilitator (SHARING Choices).

methodsSHARING Choices was delivered to 40 patient-family dyads from 3 primary care clinics. Facilitators completed post-ACP reports. Patient and family participants completed baseline and 6-week surveys.

resultsPatients were on average 75 years (range 65-90). Family were spouses (85.0%) or adult children (15.0%). At 6 weeks, nearly half of dyads participated in ACP conversations (n = 19) or used the agenda-setting checklist (n = 17), one-third (n = 13) registered family to access the patient's portal account, and most (n = 28) provided the primary care team with a new or previously completed advance directive. Of 12 patients who screened positive for cognitive impairment, 9 completed ACP conversations and 10 provided the clinic with an advance directive. ACP engagement, measured on a 4-point scale, was comparatively lower at baseline and 6 weeks among family (3.05 and 3.19) than patients (3.56 and 3.54). Patients remarked that SHARING Choices clarified communication and preferences while family reported a better understanding of their role in ACP and communication.

conclusionSHARING Choices was acceptable among older adults with and without cognitive impairment and may increase advance directive completion.