title: Advance Care Planning.
abstract: There has been a growing trend in addressing spiritual needs in caring for the person, especially nearing the end of one's life. Advance care planning (ACP) facilitates understanding of preferences and explores the spiritual and existential aspects of care. This study explores the views and preferences of a group of Catholic nuns in Singapore, specifically looking at what was meaningful and valuable to them when determining treatment options at the end of life. Twenty-three nuns were purposively recruited in July 2012. A focus group discussion was conducted after administration of a questionnaire and attendance at a 1-hour talk on ACP. Slightly more than half had heard of ACP prior to the talk. The majority agreed that ACP was not against their religious beliefs" and that quality of life was important to them. The themes that emerged from this study were autonomy and freedom, spirituality and quality of life, and the meaning of ACP. The findings of this study suggested that spirituality and faith define the way the participants lived their lives, including their views and preferences on end-of-life care. Integrating spirituality into an essential domain of care will help the spiritual community honor a crucial part of end-of-life discussions and afford a greater discernment of the deep meaning that ACP holds.
authors.affiliation: 1 Palliative Care Service, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Laurence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: 1 Palliative Care Service, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Lai Kiow
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Sim
authors.affiliation: 2 Care and Counseling Department, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: Lynnette
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: 3 Department of GeriCare @North, Alexandra Health Systems, Singapore.
authors.forename: Hui Jin
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Toh
authors.affiliation: 1 Palliative Care Service, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore.
authors.forename: James Alvin
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Low
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D032722:Advance Care Planning; D000368:Aged; D001293:Attitude to Death; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002410:Catholicism / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D065831:Nuns / Q000523:psychology*; D012846:Singapore; D029181:Spirituality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000523:psychology
keywords: advance care planning; decision-making; end of life; perception; religiosity; spirituality