Anticipation at the end of life - a critical appraisal for the clinical practice

Abstract

Anticipation at the end of life - a critical appraisal for the clinical practice Abstract. Advance planning or anticipation in health care is based on prognosis, and that is no more (and no less) than dealing with probabilities. Knowledge about prognostic factors in medicine is needed here, and competencies how to communicate it. In medicine, advance planning is currently more and more regarded as an elementary right as an expression of the implementation of patient autonomy - but what content can or must be discussed and defined? The terminology on the subject of "advance planning" is inconsistent both nationally and internationally. In Switzerland, therefore, an attempt was made to contribute to a more uniform understanding in this respect with the new "framework concept for advance planning in health care". For clinical practice it can be summarized as follows: Advance planning requires the following attributes: Trust, shared experience of health crises and how to deal with them, communicative abilities of all those involved (not only on the part of medicine!), an understanding of the role of medicine between coach and mountain guide, a systemic approach with the involvement of relatives in important decisions, an established regional health network that functions perfectly up to the electronic documentation, full cost reimbursement of the sometimes very demanding decision-making processes, documentation and revision - and of all the awareness and self-reflection that advance planning is not about certainties but about probabilities.