Help spread the word on advance care planning
Speak Up: resources available to support conversations about end-of-life care
April 16, 2013
The Canadian Partnership Against Cancer is pleased to join with voices from across the health-care community to mark National Advance Care Planning Day and encourage Canadians, including those in good health, to reflect on their end-of-life wishes.
The Speak Up campaign, led by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association and supported by the Partnership, provides resources for individuals, family members and health-care professionals start conversations about an individual’s wishes for end-of-life care.
These include wallet-sized fact cards, webinars and resources such as the new video “Conversations: it’s how we care for each other”:
Dr. Lawrence Librach, the Partnership’s Senior Scientific Lead for the Person-Centred Perspective portfolio, has designed and implemented education programs on advance care planning for local, national and international groups. In addition, Dr. Librach is a member of the Advance Care Planning National Task Group, a committee responsible for raising awareness on this important topic.
“While more Canadians are surviving cancer, it continues to be a leading cause of death, with an estimated 75,700 Canadians who died of the disease in 2012,” says Dr. Librach. “That’s why advance care planning is so important – these discussions can give people peace of mind and help them to let others know how they want to be cared for, and ultimately help reduce added stress on the family during a difficult time.”
For more information on advance care planning and the Speak Up campaign, visit advancecareplanning.ca. You can also see our palliative and end-of-life care report.
CREDIT: The Advance Care Planning in Canada Initiative, facilitated by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association with support from the Partnership, Canadian Researchers at the End of Life Network (CARENET) and the GlaxoSmithKline Foundation.