Journal of general internal medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Practical methods to increase use of advance medical directives.
To compare the effectiveness of two means for increasing the use of advance medical directives: written materials only versus written materials and an educational videotape. ⋯ In an elderly population with a substantial baseline placement rate, mailing of written materials substantially increased placement of an advance directive in the medical record, but the addition of a videotape did not. Mailing the video did increase the use of treatment trials and made patients more aware of reasons not to use advance directives.