Research ArticleOriginal Research

Older Adults’ Preferences for When and How to Discuss Life Expectancy in Primary Care

Nancy L. Schoenborn, Kimberley Lee, Craig E. Pollack, Karen Armacost, Sydney M. Dy, Qian-Li Xue, Antonio C. Wolff and Cynthia Boyd
The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine November 2017, 30 (6) 813-815; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3122/jabfm.2017.06.170067

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Tables

  • Table 1.

    Older Adults’ Preferences Regarding Life Expectancy Discussions in Primary Care

    Preferred Timing to Discuss Life ExpectancyExample
    Never“I can’t see where [discussing life expectancy] is helpful … no one wants to know when it’s coming so the less they know about when it’s coming the better off I think they are.”
    Only near end of life“[Discussing life expectancy] is not necessary unless all signs are pointing to absolutely you are not going to live past 6 months.”
    When life expectancy is longer than 1 year
        2 to 3 years“I would want to know within 2 years so that I could get things straightened out … but anything beyond that I would not want to know.”
        5 years“I think 5 years would give me the time to do the things I may want to do if I have the ability to do them.”
        As early as possible“As far in advance as possible … [even 10 years].”
    Preferred format of life expectancy information
        Qualitative description“If you think … that I might not last another 5 years, just tell me that I’m not doing as well as you had hoped, but … hold off giving a certain number.”
        Quantitative information“I think the more quantification you can provide the better.”
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