Journal of the American Society of Nephrology : JASN
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J. Am. Soc. Nephrol. · Nov 1995
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical TrialLife-sustaining treatment preferences of hemodialysis patients: implications for advance directives.
The purpose of this study was to describe the life-sustaining treatment preferences of dialysis patients and to compare the acceptability of two generic and a disease-specific advance directive (AD). Of 532 potentially eligible hemodialysis patients, 95 (17.9%) participated in the study. These patients completed two generic (the Centre for Bioethics Living Will and the Medical Directive) and one disease-specific (the Dialysis Living Will) AD in a randomized cross-over trial. ⋯ Health states and illness severity, far more than treatment descriptions, influence preferences. Dialysis patients should be offered a generic AD, and some generic AD are more acceptable than others. Only a minority of dialysis patients will complete any AD, but the completion of written AD forms is only one element in the process of advance care planning.