End-of-life rights advocacy project proves a success
Due to the success of Compassion in Dying’s End-of-Life Rights Advocacy pilot project in East London, the Big Lottery Fund have committed a further £1 million so that the out-reach service, My Life, My Decision, can be rolled out across England.
My Life, My Decision has already demonstrated a need for a service which combines information for the public as well as training for professionals on how to support individuals in their end of life decision making.
Compassion in Dying provided one-to-one support to over 100 vulnerable older people in East London to help them understand their end of life rights and gave talks and training to over 600 health and care workers, supporting them to have difficult conversations about end-of-life rights with their clients. In partnership with local Age UK’s, Compassion in Dying will extend this work across seven regions in England. My Life, My Decision will be taking a user-led approach to highlight the need for awareness and action on end of life rights through support for residents and training for healthcare professionals.
From June the project will begin to operate across seven regions in England: East London, Hillingdon, Lancashire, Oxfordshire, South Lakeland, South Tyneside and Trafford. Compassion in Dying will work with strategic partners, including Stonewall, the International Longevity Centre and Jewish Care, to ensure the outreach service meets the needs of the communities it serves.
Danielle Hamm, Director of Compassion in Dying, said:
“The success in East London has shown why it is vital that people are made aware about their rights at the end of life and we are looking forward to supporting service providers across the country.
“Advance Decision forms, which allow individuals to set out their preferences for their own end of life care in a legally binding way, have already played a vital part in the project and this is why Compassion in Dying provides free Advance Decisions for all. Making an Advance Decisions or appointing a trusted person to make decisions on your behalf, which is called a Lasting Power of Attorney, can reduce stress through the knowledge that an individual’s wishes are known and will be respected should they lose capacity to make decisions for themselves.
“Over the past twelve months over 2000 East London residents have been made aware of their legal rights at the end of life. I look forward to seeing this service help others now too.”
***ENDS***
For more information please contact Michael Charouneau 02074797732/michael.charouneau@compassionindying.org.uk
Further information:
The End-of-Life Rights Information Line
The End-of-Life Rights Information Line is available on freephone 0800 999 2434, or by emailing info@compassionindying.org.uk or writing to Information Line, Compassion in Dying, 181 Oxford Street, London W1D 2JT. The phone-line is open between 11am and 3pm Monday to Friday.
Advance Decisions
An Advance Decision is a written document that states the treatment you would want to consent to or refuse if you lost mental capacity or could not communicate. Advance Decisions used to be called living wills or advance directives.
Lasting Power of Attorneys
Health and Personal Welfare Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) can be used to give someone you trust the legal power to make medical decisions on your behalf if you lose the ability to communicate or make decisions. This can include decisions about life-sustaining treatment if that is your wish.
Compassion in Dying
Compassion in Dying is a national charity (no. 1120203) that aims to support people at the end of life to have what they consider to be a good death by providing information and support around their rights and choices. We are a leading provider of free Advance Decisions in the UK and we also conduct and review research around patient rights and choices in end-of-life care.