It’s Time to Talk
We’re here to help you have rewarding conversations with your patients about their care goals, preferences, and wishes near the end of life.
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VITAS Healthcare commissioned nationwide studies in 2021 and 2022 that found the COVID-19 pandemic has made many Americans – especially younger Americans – more open to talking about their wishes and values for end-of-life care.
The survey of 1,000 U.S. adults found that:
- More people reported that they have documented their wishes this year (35.4% in 2022 versus 32% in 2021). That percentage is still a fraction of those who say it’s important or very important (68%) and those who have at least discussed their wishes (55.5%).
- This year, older Americans (55+) reported they are more likely to discuss advance care planning (73.1% in 2022 vs. 65% in 2021).
- Black Americans reported the largest increase in likelihood to document their end-of-life wishes: 39.4% in 2022 said they were likely to discuss or document their wishes, versus only 28% who said so in 2021.
- After partner/spouse and children, primary care provider was the most common response when asked with whom people would be comfortable having advance care planning conversations.
- However, 71.4% of those surveyed say their healthcare professionals have never initiated these important conversations with them, and for most people (54.9%) no one has brought it up.
Dr. Illeana Leyva and Dr. Eric Shaban, VITAS regional medical directors, give a step-by-step demonstration of how to approach a goals-of-care conversation.
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