In September 2022, Age Concern Wellington Region launched an Advance Care Planning Service (ACP) designed to support seniors and their families through the often complex and sensitive process of planning for their future health care.
In the more than two years since launch, we helped 362 people fill in their plans, with more than half of those filing their plan with their GP and local hospital.
This was a unique service, one not provided by any other agency across New Zealand. Sadly, the service was closed on the last day of 2024 due to it being defunded by the Government.
Kay Webster was appointed as Coordinator and spent the initial months establishing and designing this essential service. As it was a completely new service, standards and procedures needed to be developed from scratch, along with presentation materials and marketing collateral and messaging.
Awareness of the need to plan for end of life care has increased dramatically, with Kay visiting 74 events where she spoke to more than 1,550 seniors about Advance Care Planning. Her pastoral and nursing experience meant she had the perfect set of skills to connect with people from all walks of life, which has been key to the success of the service. Kay’s focus has always been on creating meaningful, quality conversations that encourage individuals and families to think about end of life and make informed decisions about their future care.
“Even when an ACP isn’t immediately completed, the conversations initiated often sparked valuable discussions within families, often leading to plans being created later,” Kay explains.
Kay’s work has also had significant benefits for the wider health system, contributing to cost savings and better outcomes for individuals and families. For example, many people who completed ACPs will be able to fulfil their wish to pass away at home rather than in a hospital, which not only saves costs but also provides comfort and dignity in their final days.
With the average cost of one night in hospital being $1,200, this service has potentially saved the health system more than $2.1m, assuming those with an ACP are much more likely to spend their last days at home than in hospital.
Age Concern Wellington Region CEO Stephen Opie said, “It has been very sad to close this service and farewell Kay. But we know the impact it has had on seniors across our Region and we are comforted by the knowledge that 362 people have worked on their personal plans with hundreds more learning about the process and being resourced to have their own conversation with loved ones.”
For those wishing to know more about Advance Care Planning, resources are available for free at this website: www.myacp.org.nz/