Can you tell me why you made that choice?: A qualitative study of the influences on treatment decisions in advance care planning among adolescents and young adults undergoing bone marrow transplant

Title

Can you tell me why you made that choice?: A qualitative study of the influences on treatment decisions in advance care planning among adolescents and young adults undergoing bone marrow transplant

Creator

Needle JS; Peden-McAlpine C; Liaschenko J; Koschmann K; Sanders N; Smith A; Schellinger SE; Lyon ME

Publisher

Palliative Medicine

Date

2020

Subject

Adolescents; Advance care planning; decision making; palliative care; Young adults

Description

BACKGROUND: Adolescent and young adult advance care planning is beneficial in improving communication between patients, surrogates, and clinicians. The influences on treatment decisions among adolescents and young adults are underexplored in the literature. AIM: The aim of this study was to explore and better understand the influences on decision-making for adolescent and young adult bone marrow transplant patients about future medical care. DESIGN: Clinical case studies and qualitative inductive content analysis of treatment decisions made during the Respecting Choices<sup> R</sup> Next Steps Pediatric Advance Care Planning conversation as a component of the Family-Centered Advance Care Planning Intervention. SETTINGS/PARTICIPANTS: A total of 10 adolescent and young adult patients (aged 14-27 years) undergoing bone marrow transplant at an academic Midwest children's hospital were involved in the study. RESULTS: Influences on participants' decisions were consideration for family, quality of life, and awareness of self. Desire to avoid suffering and maintain an acceptable quality of life was often in competition with participant's concern over the perceived negative impact of discontinuing treatment on their families. CONCLUSION: This study highlights that adolescent and young adult bone marrow transplant patients are capable of meaningful deliberation about future treatment decisions. Influences on decision-making should be incorporated into advance care planning conversations to facilitate communication between patients and their surrogates. Longitudinal research is needed to explore these influences throughout the trajectory of illness.

Rights

Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).

Citation List Month

May 2021 List

Collection

Citation

Needle JS; Peden-McAlpine C; Liaschenko J; Koschmann K; Sanders N; Smith A; Schellinger SE; Lyon ME, “Can you tell me why you made that choice?: A qualitative study of the influences on treatment decisions in advance care planning among adolescents and young adults undergoing bone marrow transplant,” Pediatric Palliative Care Library, accessed March 28, 2024, https://pedpalascnetlibrary.omeka.net/items/show/17545.