Catholic Moral Teaching and Tradition on Advance Care Planning

Abstract

Although general consensus has developed relative to decision making for patients unable to make their own health care decisions, it is still the case that non-decisional patients often have no written or verbal instructions about their preferences. Advance directives and advance care planning has, in part, served as a substantive response. The authors will focus on the evolution of advance directives specific to health care. This will serve as the foundation for an analysis of salient issues facing Catholic health care at the intersection of end-of-life decision making and patient directives. Through an exploration of the ethical and operational challenges facing contemporary discussions on and utilization of advance directives, the authors explore the role palliative care can have in optimizing access to and increased utilization of this important tool.