Promoting advance care planning among community-based older adults: A randomized controlled trial.

Objective: To test an intervention designed to motivate older adults in documenting their healthcare preferences in advance, and to guide proxies in making hypothetical decisions that match those of the older adult.

Methods: The trial involved 235 older adults, of which half were assisted in communicating their wishes to their proxy. Hypothetical vignettes were used at baseline and twice after the intervention to elicit older adults' preferences and assess their proxy's ability to predict them.

Does regulating private long-term care facilities lead to better care? A study from Quebec, Canada.

Objective: In the province of Quebec, Canada, long-term residential care is provided by two types of facilities: publicly funded accredited facilities and privately owned facilities in which care is privately financed and delivered. Following evidence that private facilities were delivering inadequate care, the provincial government decided to regulate this industry. We assessed the impact of regulation on care quality by comparing quality assessments made before and after regulation.

Promoting advance planning for health care and research among older adults: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Family members are often required to act as substitute decision-makers when health care or research participation decisions must be made for an incapacitated relative. Yet most families are unable to accurately predict older adult preferences regarding future health care and willingness to engage in research studies. Discussion and documentation of preferences could improve proxies' abilities to decide for their loved ones.