We conduct high-quality research with the aim of building an evidence base for advance care planning and increasing data availability for translational research.

We collaborate with many leading universities and organisations to deliver robust research initiatives and build high-level evidence. We share our evidence and findings via academic and grey literature publications.

Published research

Organisational and advance care planning program characteristics associated with advance care directive completion: a prospective multicentre cross-sectional audit among health and residential aged care services caring for older Australians

Detering K, Sinclair C, Buck K, Sellars M, White B, Kelly H, Nolte L. BMC Health Services Research 21,700 (2021) doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-06523-z

Advance care directive prevalence among older Australians and associations with person-level predictors and quality indicators

Buck K, Nolte L, Sellars M, Sinclair C, White B, Kelly H, Macleod A, Detering K. Health Expectations (2021) doi:10.1111/hex.13264

Public knowledge, preferences and experiences about medical substitute decision-making: a national cross-sectional survey

Sellars M, Tran J, Nolte L, White B, Sinclair C, Fetherstonhaugh D, Detering K. BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care (2021) doi:10.1136/bmjspcare-2020-002619

Advance care planning participation by people with dementia: a cross-sectional survey and medical record audit

Bryant J, Sellars M, Waller A, Detering K, Sinclair C, Ruseckaite R, White B, Nolte L. BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care (2021) doi.org/10.1136/bmjspcare-2020-002550

Systematic review and content analysis of Australian health care substitute decision making online resources

Tran J, Sellars M, Nolte L, White B, Sinclair C, Fetherstonhaugh D, Detering K. Australian Health Review (2021) doi.org/10.1071/AH20070

Inadequate completion of advance care directives by individuals with dementia: national audit of health and aged care facilities

Bryant J, Sellars M, Sinclair C, Detering K, Buck K, Waller A, White B, Nolte L. BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care (2021) doi:10.1136/bmjspcare-2020-002767

Exploring advance care planning awareness, experiences, and preferences of people with cancer and support people: an Australian online cross-sectional study

Rodi H, Detering K, Sellars M, MacLeod A, Todd J, Fullerton S, Waller A, Nolte L. Supportive Care in Cancer (2020).

Identifying barriers and facilitators to implementing advance care planning in prisons: a rapid literature review

Macleod, A., Nair, D., Ilbahar, E. et al.Health Justice 8, 22 (2020)

Association between region of birth and advance care planning documentation among older Australian migrant communities: A multi-center audit study

Sinclair C, Sellars M, Buck K, Detering K, White Ben. P, Nolte L. (2020) The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, gbaa127

Advance care planning in Australia during the COVID-19 outbreak: now more important than ever

Sinclair C, Nolte L, White Ben. P, Detering K. Internal Medicine Journal. (2020) 918–923

Prevalence of advance care planning documentation and self-reported uptake in older Australians with a cancer diagnosis

Detering K, Sellars M, Kelly H, et al. Journal of Geriatric Oncology (2020)

Challenges in obtaining research ethics and governance approvals for an Australian national inter-sector multi-site audit study

Buck K, Nolte L, Kelly H, et al. Australian Health Review (accepted 20 March 2020, forthcoming)

Making decisions about long-term institutional care placement among people with dementia and their caregivers: systematic review of qualitative studies

Teng C, Loy C, Sellars M, et al. Gerontologist. 2020;60(4):e329–e346.

Personal and interpersonal factors and their associations with advance care planning documentation: A cross-sectional survey of older adults in Australia

Sellars M, Detering KM, Sinclair C, et al. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. 2020;59(6):1212-1222.e3

"This is unchartered water for all of us": Challenges anticipated by hospital clinicians when voluntary assisted dying becomes legal in Victoria

McDougall R, Hayes B, Sellars M, et al. Australian Health Review

Prospective multicentre cross-sectional audit among older Australians accessing health and residential aged care services: protocol for a national advance care directive prevalence study

Detering KM, Buck K, Sellars M, et al, Open 2019;9:e031691.

Doctors’ perspectives on adhering to advance care directives when making medical decisions for patients: an Australian interview study

Moore N, Detering KM, Low T, et al, BMJ Open 2019;9:e032638.

Costs and outcomes of advance care planning and end-of-life care for older adults with end-stage kidney disease: A person-centred decision analysis

Sellars M, Clayton JM, Detering KM, Tong A, Power D, et al. PLOS ONE. 2019:14(5): e0217787.

Concordance between self-reported completion of advance care planning documentation and availability of documentation in Australian health and residential aged care services

Buck K, Detering KM, Pollard A, et al. Journal of pain and symptom management. 2019: 58(2):264-274.

Facilitators and barriers to advance care planning implementation in Australian aged care settings: A systematic review and thematic analysis

Batchelor F, Hwang K, Haralambous B, et al. Australasian journal on ageing. 2019;38(3):173-181.

Volunteer involvement in advance care planning: a scoping review

Sellars M, Simpson J, Kelly H, et al. . Journal of pain and symptom management. 2019;57(6):1166-1175.e1.

From Patient-Centered to Person-Centered Care for Kidney Diseases

Morton RL, Sellars M. . Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. 2019;14:623-5.

Prevalence and correlates of advance care directives among older Australians accessing health and residential aged care services: multicentre audit study

Detering KM, Buck K, Ruseckaite R, et al. BMJ open. 2019;9:e025255.

Case‐control study of end‐of‐life treatment preferences and costs following advance care planning for adults with end‐stage kidney disease.

Sellars M, Morton RL, Clayton JM, Tong A, Mawren D, Silvester W, Power D, Ma R, Detering KM. Nephrology. 2019 Feb;24(2):148-54.

Perspectives of people with dementia and carers on advance care planning and end-of-life care: A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative studies.

Sellars M, Chung O, Nolte L, et al. Palliative medicine. 2019;33:274-90.

Exploring the knowledge, attitudes and needs of advance care planning in older Chinese Australians

Yap SS, Chen K, Detering KM, Fraser SA. Journal of clinical nursing. 2018;27:3298-306.

An interview study of patient and caregiver perspectives on advance care planning in ESRD

Sellars M, Clayton JM, Morton RL, et al. American Journal of Kidney Diseases. 2018;71:216-24.

A randomised controlled trial of an advance care planning intervention for patients with incurable cancer

Johnson SB, Butow PN, Bell ML, et al. British journal of cancer. 2018;119:1182.

A case‐control study of end‐of‐life treatment preferences and costs following advance care planning for adults with end stage kidney disease

Sellars M, Morton RL, Clayton JM, Tong A, Mawren D, Silvester W, Power D, Ma R, Detering KM. Nephrology. 2018 Feb 1.

An economic model of advance care planning in Australia: a cost-effective way to respect patient choice

Nguyen K-H, Sellars M, Agar M, et al. BMC health services research. 2017;17:797.

Prospective comparative effectiveness cohort study comparing two models of advance care planning provision for Australian community aged care clients

Detering KM, Carter RZ, Sellars MW, Lewis V, Sutton EA. . BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care. 2017;7:486-94.

Advance care planning in chronic kidney disease: a survey of current practice in Australia

Luckett T, Spencer L, Morton RL, Pollock CA, Lam L, Silvester W, Sellars M, Detering KM, Butow PN, Tong A, Clayton JM. Nephrology. 2017 Feb 1;22(2):139-49.

Australian psychiatrists' support for psychiatric advance directives: responses to a hypothetical vignette

Sellars M, Fullam R, O'Leary C, Mountjoy R, Mawren D, Weller P, Newton R, Brophy L, McEwan T, Silvester W. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law. 2017 Jan 2;24(1):61-73.

Protocol for a national prevalence study of advance care planning documentation and self-reported uptake in Australia

Ruseckaite R, Detering KM, Evans SM, et al. BMJ Open. 2017;7:e018024.

Exploring the knowledge, attitudes and needs of advance care planning in older Chinese-Australian

Yap SS, Chen K, Detering KM, Fraser SA.Journal of clinical nursing. 2017 May 23.

2016

Advance care planning in Australia: what does the law say?

Carter RZ, Detering KM, Silvester W, Sutton E. Australian Health Review. 2016 Aug 26;40(4):405-14.

2016

Advance care planning in patients with incurable cancer: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Johnson S, Clayton J, Butow PN, Silvester W, Detering K, Hall J, Kiely BE, Cebon J, Clarke S, Bell ML, Stockler M. BMJ open. 2016 Dec 1;6(12):e012387.

2015

Current advance care planning practice in the Australian community: an online survey of home care package case managers and service managers

Sellars M, Detering KM, Silvester W. BMC palliative care. 2015 Dec;14(1):15.

2015

Palliative care health professionals’ experiences of caring for patients with advance care directives

Johnson CE, Singer R, Masso M, Sellars M, Silvester W. Australian Health Review. 2015 Apr 23;39(2):154-9.

2015

Advance care planning in palliative care: a national survey of health professionals and service managers

Sellars M, Silvester W, Masso M, Johnson CE. Australian Health Review. 2015 Apr 23;39(2):146-53.

2015

Feasibility and acceptability of advance care planning in elderly Italian and Greek speaking patients as compared to English-speaking patients: an Australian cross-sectional study

Detering K, Sutton E, Fraser S, Wallis K, Silvester W, Mawren D, Whiteside K. BMJ open. 2015 Aug 1;5(8):e008800.

2014

Advance care planning for adults with CKD: a systematic integrative review. American Journal of Kidney Diseases

Luckett T, Sellars M, Tieman J, Pollock CA, Silvester W, Butow PN, Detering KM, Brennan F, Clayton JM. 2014 May 1;63(5):761-70.

2014

Teaching general practitioners and doctors-in-training to discuss advance care planning: evaluation of a brief multimodality education programme. BMJ supportive & palliative care

Detering K, Silvester W, Corke C, Milnes S, Fullam R, Lewis V, Renton J. 2014 May 20:bmjspcare-2013.

2011

Advance directives, perioperative care and end-of-life planning. Best Practice & Research Clinical Anaesthesiology

Silvester W, Detering K. 2011 Sep 1;25(3):451-60.

2011

Advance care planning and end-of-life care

Silvester W, Detering K.The Medical journal of Australia. 2011 Oct 17;195(8):435-6.

2010

The impact of advance care planning on end of life care in elderly patients: randomised controlled trial

Detering KM, Hancock AD, Reade MC, Silvester W. Bmj. 2010 Mar

Grey literature complements published evidence by providing information such as:

  • reports from analyses that aren’t typically published in journals
  • quality improvement activities
  • national program activities and evaluation
  • policy analyses
  • very recent unpublished findings

2021

  • Advance care planning laws: can we improve consistency? - this document is available on request by emailing acpa@austin.org.au.

2020

2019

2017

Current research projects

Advance care directive prevalence study project

During 2018-20, we've been funded by the Australian Government to deliver the 'Prevalence of Advance Care Planning Documentation in Australian Health and Residential Aged Care Services' study. This study has collected a national dataset on the uptake of advance care planning documents across jurisdictions, sectors, medical conditions and services.

The findings of this study have implications for policy makers, stakeholder organisations, service providers and the community within Australia and internationally.

Research collaboration

We invite opportunities to partner with individuals and organisations pursuing research in similar areas of interests.

If you would like to collaborate on a research project, please contact us.

Last updated: September 2023