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Mission
How did it start?
Where is it going?
How is it being extended to the community and GPs?
Where is the RPC Program?
The Respecting Patient Choices Program
The Respecting Patient Choices Program is a comprehensive advance care planning program. It began in 2002 as a pilot project at the Austin Hospital, Melbourne, and continues to be implemented across Victorian health services, the residential aged care setting, and is now established in each state and territory across Australia.
Organisations with RPC include Warrnambool Palliative Care, Eastern Health (Box Hill Hospital), Northern Health (The Northern Hospital, Bundoora Extended Care Centre), Barwon Health and Southern Health. The Program has been extended to one major hospital in each Australian state and territory. The first of these was The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide, followed by Hunter Health in NSW and The Townsville Hospital in Queensland, The Fremantle Hospital, WA. During 2006 RPC was implemented at The Royal Hobart Hospital, The Canberra Hospital and The Royal Darwin Hospital.
The Respecting Patient Choices Program will:
- respect every persons right to autonomy, dignity and fully informed consent
- assist individuals to reflect upon, choose and communicate their wishes regarding their current and future health care
- respect individuals wishes
- educate and support health professionals to facilitate this.
The Program is based on the Respecting Choices® program (www.gundluth.org/eolprograms ) developed by the Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation (GLMF) in Wisconsin, USA. GLMF have granted Austin Health an exclusive licence for the program in Australia. The Respecting Patient Choices Program in Australia has modified the original Respecting Choices Program in order to ensure that the language, education materials and system changes that are promoted are applicable to the Australian health care system.
With funding from the National Institute of Clinical Studies, Austin Health piloted Respecting Patient Choices in 2002-2003. The Respecting Patient Choices Program was subsequently taken to further clinical ward areas in Austin Health. Further funding from the Department of Health and Ageing has resulted in the Program being extended to one lead site in each state and territory and Residential Aged Care Facilities and Community based Palliative Care Services in the Austin Health catchment area.
In Victoria, the Department of Human Services has provided funding to extend the Program to Southern Health, Northern Health, Barwon Health and Eastern Health. South-West Health Care has also implemented RPC in several areas.
The pilot’s success prompted the Victorian Government, Department of Human Services to support an initiative (originally funded under HARP) to introduce RPC to other health services in Victoria. Respecting Patient Choices (RPC) sites in Victoria now include Austin Health, Barwon Health, Eastern Health, Northern Health, and Southern Health.
The Australian Government, Department of Health and Ageing supported Austin Health to pilot the RPC Program in residential aged care facilities and palliative care services in the local community and to introduce the Program to one major hospital in each Australian state and territory during 2004 – 2006. This is now complete and many of the health services across Australia involved in the national roll out of RPC are now involved in various activities to further extend RPC to their communities.
How is it being extended to the community and GPs? | back to top
In Victoria, we are engaging the GP divisions through their Aged Care Panels to support advance care planning in residential aged care and in General Practice.
The RPC Program is also currently engaged with the Royal Australian College of GPs to develop methods of education and promotion of advance care planning specifically aimed at GPs.
Where is the RPC Program? | back to top
The RPC Program was developed at Austin Health in Victoria in 2002 and, with funding from the Department of Health and Ageing was extended to one lead site in each State and Territory in Australia from 2004-6. The RPC Program has also been implemented in hospitals, 2 palliative care services and numerous aged care facilities around Victoria.
Victoria:
- Austin Health
- Barwon Health
- Eastern Health
- Northern Health
- Southern Health
- South West Health Care (Warrnambool, Portland, Hamilton)
Residential Aged Care Facilities - Victoria
- Airlie SRS
- Anesi
- Clevedon Terrace
- Dowell Court Hostel
- Eden Terrace
- Eltham Lodge
- Elizabeth House
- Greensborough Nursing Home
- Rowena Nursing Home
- Silverwood Nursing Home
- Sir William Hall Hostel
- Southern Cross Care
- St Francis of Assisi
- Templestowe Grange
- Waterdale Assisted Living
- Willandra House
- Wattle Glen Aged Care Facility
Community Specialist Palliative Care Services
- Banksia Palliative Care
- Melbourne CityMission
South Australia
- The Queen Elizabeth Hospital
New South Wales
- John Hunter Hospital
- Inverell Hospital
Queensland
Tasmania
ACT
Western Australia
Northern Territory
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