Advance care planning (ACP), or the process by which people and their surrogate decision-makers prepare for communication and medical decision-making, is associated with higher satisfaction with communication and care and lower surrogate distress. Given the complexity of decision-making related to serious illnesses, the relative need to explore goals for medical care is higher for people with serious illness compared to healthy individuals. Yet, research exploring how people with serious illness engage in ACP is limited. In this cross-sectional study those with serious illness were significantly more likely than those without to have discussed ACP with people close to them and clinicians. Participants who were worried (vs not worried) about surrogates making the best or right decisions or having access to best treatments had significantly higher ACP engagement.
Link: JAMA Network Open (11/2025)
