IMPACT:

IMPACT Of the 2.6 million people who died in the U.S. in 2014, 2.1 million, or eight out of 10, received Medicare benefits. This amounted to Medicare spending $170 billion on patient care within the last six months of life. Much of that was spent on unnecessary medical treatments that could have been avoided had the patient had an advance directive in place. The biggest obstacles with getting advance directives completed have mainly been attributed to lack of provider time and training, communication barriers including technical medical-legal jargon or ESL patients and difficulty in coordinating the conversation between provider, patient and family. 90% of people believe that talking with loved ones about end-of-life care is important but only 27% of the population has actually done so. Of those 27% that have had the conversation, only a fraction have a completed and current advance directive in place. Further complicating the situation, of those that have a completed advance directive, often times they are filled out incorrectly, they may contradict themselves, they are not signed, they do not contain the patients most recent wishes, or worse, they are not available at the time of a medical crisis. Advanced Care Planning® addresses each challenge providers and patients face with the current process of planning and documenting end of life wishes.

PRODUCT:

Advanced Care Planning® is an effective and efficient approach to end of life planning. ACP® is a software program that cuts through technical medical jargon, language barriers, as well as provider time and training restraints, to help facilitate an efficient conversation on end of life decisions. ACP facilitates a streamlined conversation saving providers an invaluable amount of time, while still allowing the provider to bill the insurance company for their service. Major features of ACP® include:  User-friendly online program which creates an advance directive in a few easy steps:

• Clear explanations
• Illustrated videos
• Program available in more than 10 major languages
• Helps the user understand their medical options
• Creates a clear and concise document entailing end of life wishes
• Coordinates information and collects signatures amongst major parties
• Provides regular reminders to complete and update advance directive
• Provides each user with a digital copy of advanced directive to store on their phone that can be accessed by emergency personnel without having to enter a password

ACP® will be utilized in all health care facilities including clinics, skilled nursing facilities, and hospitals. At the facility, patients will be provided with a hand-held tablet that contains the software and, with the assistance of a medical staff member, the patient will go through the self-directed prompts and make their selections. The provider will then review the selections and discuss any questions the patient and/or family member may have. The patient, provider and medical staff will e-sign the document which can then be shared electronically with whomever the patient chooses including family, friends and patients attorney.