Are demographic characteristics associated with advance directive completion? A secondary analysis of two randomized trials

Preferences for future medical treatments may be documented in a legal document known as an advance directive (AD). Despite national efforts to promote AD completion, men, blacks, and those with less education less frequently complete ADs. However, it remains unclear whether such groups differ in their willingness to complete ADs or have different opportunities to do so. The latter would suggest disparities in access to advance care planning. We sought to elucidate this key distinction by assessing associations between demographic characteristics and AD completion within two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that presented uniform opportunities to participants who may be targeted for AD completion.

Otto Haas Charitable Trust
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health