Level 2 Advance Care Planning Practitioner Training Review

Health Workforce New Zealand (HWNZ) commissioned Deloitte to undertake an independent review of the Level 2 Advance Care Planning training programme in 2014.

The programme, which began in 2010, offers skills to enhance health practitioners’ abilities to communicate with patients facing significantly declining capacity or end of life. Since 2012 HWNZ have funded the Northern Regional Alliance to coordinate the delivery of the training nationally.

The aim of the review was to establish the effectiveness and financial sustainability of the programme, as part of standard monitoring processes.

HWNZ has accepted the review report, which provides useful information and recommendations for the future sustainability and success of the programme.

The report concluded that the programme is very effective in ensuring practitioners have increased confidence in practising Advance Care Planning, and in facilitating it in the long term.

The report identified some key barriers to attending the course, which resulted in varied uptake across the regions. Key barriers included: the course length; cost of training; and inflexibility in the course minimum and maximum participant numbers.

In line with the recommendations of the report, Health Workforce New Zealand plans to maintain funding support for delivery of the programme for 12 months, with conditions attached that will address the above barriers and other identified issues. Key conditions include:

• reducing the duration of the training and the development of a shorter, intermediate course to encourage wider uptake and reduce costs of training
• changes to how the training is marketed and delivered
• improvements to accounting and reporting practices.