On Tuesday 6th of May, members of PCNSW’s CALD Communities & Palliative Care Professional Network attended an online member circle on Advancing culturally appropriate palliative care for older people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in residential aged care. The session was run by Dr Minah Gaviola, a registered nurse and Lecturer at The University of Newcastle.
Dr Gaviola presented the findings of three studies conducted on Advance Care Planning (ACP) and culturally appropriate care for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) older people in residential aged care (RAC). Each study provided key insights into the unique issues faced by CALD communities as well as clinicians and staff in these settings.
The first study was a ‘Retrospective review of advance care plan’, which explored the level of ACP documentation and evidence of the older person and family involvement, related to the cultural needs of older people who identify as Chinese ethnicity in two NSW residential aged care facilities. The study found that ACP was documented in several forms and was completed for the majority of the eligible residents. While these documents included general information about the person’s culture and spirituality, it was recommended that including specific details about the person’s cultural needs would be beneficial in providing high quality palliative care.
The second study explored ‘Culturally appropriate care for older Chinese in residential aged care’. It was found that residents had limited understanding of ACP and expected doctors to make final decisions about their palliative care. Registered Nurses (RNs) found it difficult to have conversations about ACP due to language barriers between themselves and residents. For many residents discussions about end-of-life planning needed to take place within the context of cultural and familial traditions. In light of this, the study recommended a need for guidelines on culturally sensitive approaches to engage residents and families in discussing palliative care and ACP.
The third study presented ‘Culturally appropriate palliative care for people of Chinese ethnicity with dementia in residential aged care: a model of care’. A culturally appropriate model of care was co-designed with older residents of Chinese ethnicity, family members and staff members and implemented over a 6-month period. The findings of this study are yet to be finalised.
This was a great opportunity for members of the CALD Communities & Palliative Care Professional Network to hear from Dr Gaviola and consider how evidence based studies like these can support the development of culturally appropriate palliative care for residents, family members and staff in RAC throughout NSW.
Palliative Care NSW would like to thank Minah for presenting her research and sharing such important information with members of the professional network.
To read more about Dr Gaviola’s research, click here: https://palliativecarensw.org.au/national-advance-care-planning-week-acp-among-culturally-and-linguistically-diverse-older-people-in-residential-aged-care/