Physician-facilitated designation of proxy decision-makers: family physician perceptions.

Background: Among the challenges encountered during the care of patients at the end-of-life (EOL), eliciting preferences of patients with whom there is no ability to communicate is common and stressful for all those concerned and charged with patient care. Legal facilities available include patient delegation of proxy decision-makers (PDM) prior to communication incapacity. We sought to estimate family physician awareness and attitude with regard to these aspects of patient care.