This week, Frimley Health and Care are raising awareness of the ReSPECT process. ReSPECT stands for Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment.
We know it’s hard to think about planning for a clinical emergency in the last year of life when you are feeling well, but preparing for a crisis before it happens helps to ensure your wishes are followed appropriately. Being proactive and completing this personalised recommendation plan will help you to decide which treatments you do and don't want when you are not able to make decisions or express your wishes yourself.
The ReSPECT process emphasises involving family, carers and health professionals so that they can understand your wishes and be supported to follow them.
What is a ReSPECT Plan?
The ReSPECT plan is for anyone, with increasing relevance for people who have particular needs; who are likely to be nearing the end of their lives; or who want to record their care and treatment preferences for any other reason and is an ongoing continuous process.
1. It is a discussion between you and your health professionals (and other people important to you) to reach a shared understanding of your current state of health and how it may change in the foreseeable future
2. It is used to identify what is important to you in relation to goals of care in the event of a future emergency
3. It is a way of recording an agreed focus of care (either more towards life-sustaining treatments or more towards prioritising comfort over efforts to sustain life)
4. It allows you to make and record shared recommendations about specific types of care and realistic treatment that should/shouldn’t be given, and explains sensitively recommendations about treatments that would clearly not work in your situation
5. It also allows someone to make and record a shared recommendation about whether or not CPR is recommended
You will keep a ReSPECT plan with you and try to make sure that it will be available immediately in an emergency to health professionals, such as ambulance crews, out-of-hours doctors, or hospital staff if you are admitted to hospital. It allows health and care staff to make the right decisions on the most appropriate form and place of treatment and care, in line with your wishes.
It is important to note that the ReSPECT plan cannot be used to demand treatments that are not likely to benefit you and would not be offered.
In an emergency where you are not able to make decisions or express an opinion, clinical decisions will be made by health professionals using your ReSPECT Plan whilst trying to act in your best interests and for your benefit.
For more information on ReSPECT visit the Frimley Health and Care website, or if you have any questions about ReSPECT, speak to a member of your healthcare team.