PEMBROKESHIRE hospice-at-home charity the Paul Sartori Foundation has launched an online Future Care Planning course to help health and social care professionals initiate sensitive conversations, understand what matters to individuals and record their wishes in a Future Care Plan.

An exciting aspect to this project is being able to offer the course bilingually, in both Welsh and English. A significant amount of support, guidance, and patience has been given by the Welsh company Ateb in providing a workable platform and interactive course, whilst ensuring the best use of the charity's available funds. They believe that this is the first bilingual course provided covering this subject.

Whilst the Paul Sartori Foundation has spearheaded the approach to making Future Care Planning part of everyday conversations since 2015, it was recognised that attending training can often be difficult and inaccessible for many.

Enabled through funding from the National Lottery Community Grant in 2024, the course has been designed for people to do in their own time and gain what information they need, for their specific practice. It is aimed at those who have no knowledge of the subject but also for those who wish to have a deeper understanding, as there are many additional resources included.

Future Care Planning does not need to be difficult or specialist. A conversation about future care can start with a simple question, such as “Where would you feel most comfortable being cared for?” “Who do you want involved in discussions about your care, if you needed someone else to decide for you?”

Putting those wishes into words can help families, carers, and healthcare professionals with the things that matter to that person, promoting a more holistic approach to decision making.

Future Care Planning team leader Fay Morley says the team is excited to launch the online training portal. She adds: “As nurses, with many years’ experience, we have always felt passionate about giving the individual the right to guide and influence their care, especially if this ability is ever taken away from them. Anything we have been able to do to provide a better awareness and equip others to embrace Future Care Planning is considered an achievement”.

The course is currently designed for health and social care professionals only, not the general public, something the charity hope to address in the future. Registration for the course is welcome and will be via the Paul Sartori website. Interested parties are encouraged to visit www.paulsartori.org/our-care/future-care-planning/ and click the “Register” button today.

The course is free until March 31, 2027, or until the first 100 registrations are reached. From April 2027, the course will still be available but will incur a cost as this needs to be a sustainable service for the Foundation following the end of the Lottery funding.

The Future Care Planning team would like to acknowledge the significant contribution Sarah Hunter made to the planning, design, and content of the course. Although she no longer works for the Foundation, her work and dedication was truly valued.