Project Overview

Advance care planning (ACP) is a method used by patients to express preferences for life-sustaining treatments at the end-of-life. With growing ethnocultural diversity in Canada, healthcare providers are managing an increasing number of diverse beliefs/values that are commonly associated with preferences for mechanical ventilation (MV). This study aims to explore facilitators and barriers with current approaches used by healthcare providers to set care plans for MV with ethnocultural populations. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight healthcare providers who engage in ACP from five acute-care hospitals. Three major themes emerged: 1) Goals of care across illness continuum 2) Respecting beliefs, values and wishes for care, and 3) Cross-cultural support in ACP. Using a value-based approach in ACP was described as an effective approach for managing and interpreting diverse beliefs/values that impact decisions for MV. However, personnel, organizational and systemic barriers continue to hinder the provision of cross-cultural ACP across health settings.