Attitudes and Perceptions on Advance Care Planning Among Chinese-Speaking Older Australians.
Ling H Yeoh, Benjamin Tan, Joel Rhee and 1 others
PMID 37658638WHAT IT FOUND
Chinese-speaking older Australians and carers were open to end-of-life talks but mostly had not heard of advance care planning.
Participants said story-based, indirect conversations and family-inclusive planning helped them discuss what mattered most.
Key findings
01Most participants had not heard of advance care planning before the interview, even though they were open to discussing end-of-life issues.
02Participants said using another person's story and scenario questions helped them begin and reflect on end-of-life discussions.
03Participants wanted personal choice respected but also valued family agreement, with the primary carer, close relatives or family voting often influencing decisions.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study used purposive and snowball sampling with 20 participants, so it describes attitudes and perceptions rather than measured patient outcomes. The sample was limited to Sydney and overrepresented Cantonese-speaking participants, so views may not transfer to other dialects, residential aged care, hospitals or rural areas. Most participants were healthy, independent community-dwelling older adults and none was in a critical or end stage of illness, so it may not reflect people who are critically or end-stage ill. The observation that older women who were divorced or widowed and lived alone had higher interest in advance care planning came from a small sample with six male participants and cannot be generalised.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that story-based conversations increase advance care planning uptake or improve end-of-life care. The study reported participants' perceptions and themes, so it cannot show an outcome.