Have you supported someone with their end of life planning, in a professional, volunteer, carer, friend or relative capacity?

Would you share your experiences of facilitating dialogue around advance care planning, especially if you have supported (or wished for) intergenerational dialogue?

Could you kindly take 10 minutes (or more if you’ve lots to share) to fill in my survey? 

I am doing research into how end-of-life doulas, hospice workers/volunteers, health professionals and other later life practitioners, assist their clients to undertake conversations about end of life planning, or ‘advance care planning’ (ACP). This end of life planning might happen formally or informally, and it may involve the next generation, whether relatives or friends (eg sons/ daughters/ nieces/ nephews/ cousins/ friends). I would be grateful if you would share any experiences of facilitating intergenerational dialogue, or what happens when the next generation isn’t involved in end of life planning.

[A note: I am sensitive to the fact that intergenerational ‘end of life planning conversations’ are very different when the next generation might be a child, in the case of earlier deaths of, for example, a young parent. This study focuses on older people and the adult next generation, however, if feel called to share what you have learnt about discussing death with children and younger people, who are often so full of insight about these matters, this will be sensitively and warmly received too.]

Elder Mediation Summit 2018

The findings of my research will be presented at the Elder Mediation World Summit 2018 in May. I will explore the difference between intergenerational end of life planning conversations. Examples of intergenerational relationships include parent/adult children, aunt/nephew and older friend/younger friend. I’m interested in conversations between people and their peers, or people and their health professionals. I want to look at how sharing in advance planning affects adult children’s experience of their loved one’s end of life. Also, how older people feel knowing that their adult children (or other next generation relative/friend) have contributed to the expression of their end of life wishes. In parallel, I would like to explore the barriers to these intergenerational conversations and how doulas can ease them.

At the end, I ask you if you’d like a copy of my paper – I’ll be happy to share my findings with you. Please leave your email address.

My Background

For background, I undertook foundation EOL Doula training with ‘Living Well Dying Well‘ in 2014/5 and am now a health-focussed accredited mediator and dialogue facilitator. I also helped develop Living Well Dying Well’s ACP manual (for doulas supporting a person undertaking advance care planning), a project led by Alizoun Dickinson and Hermione Elliott, in 2016. My work centres around exploring dialogue as a tool for wellbeing.

Thanks so much for sharing your insights and experiences on intergenerational end of life planning. Even brief answers make a real difference . All questions are optional, so just pick the ones you feel you want to answer.

All responses will be anonymised, however do feel free to add your own anonymising factors if you are referring to people you have supported. I will not use your email address for any other purpose than to contact you about this survey, and then only if you state below that you would like to me. You or your clients will not be identified in any way in my research.

Please submit your survey as soon as possible, and by 1st May 2018.

Best wishes, and thanks again,
Arabella

Arabella Tresilian
Mediator
arabellatresilian.com