Why should I plan for my future care?

Regardless of our current health and wellbeing, we can all benefit from being prepared for some of the choices that may face us in the future. There may become a time when we are unable to communicate what we would like to happen to us, either due to illness, an accident or mental incapacity. If we record and share our wishes in advance, we are more likely to get the care we want.

Feedback from people we have supported through this process, highlight the benefits some have found from going through the planning ahead process:

It was something I always meant to do but never found the time. Now I’ve got things in place I feel a weight has lifted and I can move on.

It was quite an emotional process but so valuable. I have talked to my GP and feel confident that all the relevant people now know how I’d like to spend the time I have left and how I want to be looked after.

Here actor Greg Wise explains why he has planned for his future care:

Coordinate My Care

Those living a in a London Borough have access to an online NHS clinical service call MyCMC.

MyCMC is a simple tool that allows people to create their own urgent care plan online. Once you have created your record it is important that you make an appointment to speak with your GP or Nurse who will then input your medical details. Once this has been done, they will  create a Coordinate My Care (CMC) record for you which means that your wishes and care preferences are shared with  all the health and social care professionals who look after you: such as 111, the out-of-hours GPs, the Ambulance Service and the Emergency Departments.

The MyCMC website has a simple step-by-step guide to creating your MyCMC record. To get started you will need:

• Your postcode
• Your NHS number
• An email address (if you don’t have one you can use a proxy email e.g. a relative or a friend’s email)

You will find the MyCMC site here: https://www.coordinatemycare.co.uk/mycmc/

ReSPECT

For those living outside the London area there is a process known as ReSPECT .  ReSPECT stands for Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment. The ReSPECT process creates a personalised recommendation for your clinical care in emergency situations where you are not able to make decisions or express your wishes.

The plan is created between you and your health professionals.  Once you have created the plan (it is an easily recognisable purple form), it stays with you so it is available to health professionals called to help you in an emergency  such as ambulance crews, out-of-hours doctors, and hospital staff.

For more information please visit the ReSPECT website or mention it to your GP if you would like to create a ReSPECT form: www.respectprocess.org.uk

Princess Alice Hospice – Planning Ahead Document for recording your wishes

Some people find it useful to work on their own paper Planning Ahead document either as preparation for completing MyCMC or a  ReSPECT form, or as a standalone document. There are lots of different forms available online to record your wishes but Princess Alice Hospice has created a form in conjunction with a number of organisations, which you can download here.