End-of-life planning activities: an integrated process

Area of Science:

• Gerontology and Public Health
• Sociology of Health and Aging

Background:

• End-of-life planning encompasses crucial decisions regarding healthcare, finances, and final arrangements.
• Understanding factors influencing the completion of these plans is vital for public health initiatives and individual well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate common characteristics that predict the completion of various end-of-life planning decisions.
• To explore whether demographic and psychosocial factors influence engagement in health care power of attorney, living wills, wills, funeral preplanning, and organ donation.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from the Nebraska End-of-Life Survey.
• Logistic regression models were employed to identify significant predictors of plan completion.
• Examined completion rates for five distinct end-of-life plans.

Main Results:

• Older age, increased household income, and higher religiosity were significant predictors for completing end-of-life plans, including funeral and burial preplanning.
• Religiosity emerged as a predictor for both financial and health care planning, highlighting its multifaceted role.
• These factors suggest a potential integrated process underlying end-of-life decision-making.

Conclusions:

• Completion of diverse end-of-life plans may be interconnected, influenced by age, socioeconomic status, and spiritual beliefs.
• The significant role of religiosity in predicting both health care and financial planning warrants further in-depth investigation.
• Findings underscore the importance of considering these predictors in promoting comprehensive end-of-life planning.