Health Equity: Advance Care Planning for Spanish Speaking Teens With Cancer-1st Resubmission

Pediatric ACP (Advance Care Planning) (pACP) (1) Supports communication with children/adolescents at any stage of a serious illness in understanding their illness, complications, fears, and hopes, as well as treatment preferences regarding future medical care with their family; (2) Communicates these goals of care and treatment preferences with their physician; and (3) Documents these goals of care and end-of-life treatment preferences. Among adolescents, cancer is the leading cause of disease-related deaths. Survival has improved far less for 15 to 24 year-olds than it has for older patients. About one-fourth will die prematurely. No pediatric Advance Care Planning (pACP) model exists to serve Spanish speaking adolescents with cancer. Objective: To take first steps to implement pACP as a routine, structured intervention in pediatric hospitals with underserved Spanish speaking adolescents living with cancer through timely conversations with their families to relieve suffering (physical, psychological, spiritual) and maximize the quality of life