A population-based study on advance directive completion and completion intention among citizens of the western Canadian province of Alberta

• Author(s) / Creator(s)

  • Wilson, D. M.
  • Birch, S.
  • Houttekier, D.
  • Cohen, J.
  • Hewitt, J. A.
  • MacLeod, R.
  • Kunju, S. A.

• Determining what proportion of the public has completed an advance directive and which population subgroups complete or do not complete such a directive is crucially important for planning purposes. Our research objective was to examine and compare advance directive completion, intention to complete, and noncompletion rates among citizens of one Canadian province. A telephone survey was conducted with 1,203 Albertans who met gender, age, and other requirements for a representative sample. When asked, \"Do you have a living will or personal directive?\" 43.6 percent reported having completed a directive and 42.1 percent indicated that they planned or intended to complete one. Completion rates increased with age. Widowed, self-employed, and retired people, and those who had lost a family member or friend and had other select end-of-life experiences and viewpoints were significantly more likely to have completed one. Although older people more often had an advance directive, personal life-and-death experiences should be recognized as major influences on directive completion.

• Date created

  2013

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Advance directives
  • Intentions
  • Demographic aspects

• Type of Item

  Article (Published)

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3MP4VV5T

• License

  © 2013 Journal of Palliative Care. This version of this article is open access and can be downloaded and shared. The original author(s) and source must be cited.