Among the 23 participants who viewed the video, 21 indicated a preference for receiving comfort care only. One chose basic care, one was undecided, but none chose life-prolonging care. About half of the narrative-only group - 14 of 27 participants - chose basic care, with six choosing comfort care and seven choosing life-prolonging care. Preferences regarding CPR had been almost the same before the intervention - with half indicating no, a third indicating yes and the rest uncertain - but when reinterviewed, all but two of those viewing the video said they would not choose CPR, while preferences among the control group were largely unchanged.

"In addition to being much more likely to prefer comfort-oriented care, those who viewed the video were overwhelmingly comfortable watching it and found it to be helpful and something they would recommend to other patients. They were also more certain of their decision and more knowledgeable about their options than control group members," says Volandes, an instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

"These results show how videos can help surmount communication barriers and reinforce patient/doctor discussions to solidify patients' choices for their medical care," he adds. "We are continuing to explore the role of video in advanced care planning for a more diverse group of patients with different forms of cancer."

Source: Massachusetts General Hospital