• Rebecca L Sudore, Daren K Heyland, Hillary D Lum, RietjensJudith A CJACDepartment of Public Health, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands., Ida J Korfage, Christine S Ritchie, Laura C Hanson, Diane E Meier, Steven Z Pantilat, Karl Lorenz, Michelle Howard, Michael J Green, Jessica E Simon, Mariko A Feuz, and John J You.
• Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA; Veteran Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California, USA. Electronic address: Rebecca.sudore@ucsf.edu.
• J Pain Symptom Manage. 2018 Feb 1; 55 (2): 245255.e8245-255.e8.

ContextStandardized outcomes that define successful advance care planning (ACP) are lacking.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to create an Organizing Framework of ACP outcome constructs and rate the importance of these outcomes.MethodsThis study convened a Delphi panel consisting of 52 multidisciplinary, international ACP experts including clinicians, researchers, and policy leaders from four countries. We conducted literature reviews and solicited attendee input from five international ACP conferences to identify initial ACP outcome constructs. In five Delphi rounds, we asked panelists to rate patient-centered outcomes on a seven-point "not-at-all" to "extremely important" scale. We calculated means and analyzed panelists' input to finalize an Organizing Framework and outcome rankings.ResultsOrganizing Framework outcome domains included process (e.g., attitudes), actions (e.g., discussions), quality of care (e.g., satisfaction), and health care (e.g., utilization). The top five outcomes included 1) care consistent with goals, mean 6.71 (±SD 0.04); 2) surrogate designation, 6.55 (0.45); 3) surrogate documentation, 6.50 (0.11); 4) discussions with surrogates, 6.40 (0.19); and 5) documents and recorded wishes are accessible when needed 6.27 (0.11). Advance directive documentation was ranked 10th, 6.01 (0.21). Panelists raised caution about whether "care consistent with goals" can be reliably measured.ConclusionA large, multidisciplinary Delphi panel developed an Organizing Framework and rated the importance of ACP outcome constructs. Top rated outcomes should be used to evaluate the success of ACP initiatives. More research is needed to create reliable and valid measurement tools for the highest rated outcomes, particularly "care consistent with goals."Published by Elsevier Inc.

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