Advance care planning | Te whakamahere tiaki i mua i te wā taumaha

Advance care planning helps you, your whānau and your health care team plan for your future health and wellbeing, including your end-of-life care. Having an advance care plan makes it much easier for everyone to know what you want – especially if you can no longer speak for yourself.

You can do an advance care plan when you are well, or if you have a diagnosis or long-term condition. It can be reviewed if your health changes and new decisions have to be made. You can share the ways you would like those caring for you to look after your physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural needs.

Your advance care plan can also cover what sort of funeral you would like, whether you want to donate your organs, whether you want to be buried or cremated, where your important papers are and whether you have in place an enduring power of attorney or advance directive.

Plan helps whānau face an uncertain future

Tahu Hikuroa has aggressive brain tumours that means his future is uncertain. But, having an advance care plan has helped Tahu and wife Jo to make some tough decisions and feel more in control of what lies ahead.

For Tahu, being at home with Jo and their sons Knox and Manaaki is very important, and his preference is to die at home. They are putting in place supports, like home help, to help make this possible.

Knowing this has helped Jo face the reality that she may need more help to keep him at home as his health deteriorates. She is reassured that home support service will be there when they need it.  They have now also spoken with their sons about what to expect when their dad’s health does get worse.

For more information and to see more stories visit www.myacp.org.nz.