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Minister for Seniors and Ageing Well joins campaign for Advance Care Planning at Eldercare Cottage Grove
Legal Services Commission of South Australia CEO, Gabrielle Canny visited Eldercare Cottage Grove last Saturday alongside the Minister for Seniors and Aging Well, Nat Cook MP, to discuss the importance of documenting your advance care planning wishes using legal tools.
South Australians are being urged to ensure their wishes for future care and end of life are legally recorded in a statewide campaign for Plan Ahead Week.
Planning ahead in the event of illness or sudden incapacitation, can provide peace of mind and legal protection, yet a landmark national study – the ACP Prevalence Research Project – found that 70 per cent of people aged 65 and over have no advance care planning in place.
“We know that Advance Care Plans improve end of life care as they enable a person’s prior wishes to be known should they lose decision-making capacity.
Over 87% of residents at Eldercare have an Advance Care Plan compared to the national average of 37.7% in the aged care sector generally,” said Eldercare Chief Executive Jane Pickering.
Advance care planning can alleviate stress by providing loved ones with guidance on finances, property, health care, family care, pets and living arrangements if someone is no longer able to make decisions for themselves.