Exploring the Issues of Advance Directives in Patients with Mild Dementia in Taiwan

Due to cultural traditions, most Taiwanese do not have an advance directive or healthcare proxy. We explored how patients with mild dementia in Taiwan may still make self-determined decisions concerning advance directives for their healthcare and end-of-life care choices as the disease progresses. We examined 260 respondents with mild dementia at a Taiwan medical center: 199 patients who agreed (and 61 patients who disagreed) with the concept of advance directives completed a structured questionnaire. Multiple logistic regression models to determine the between-group differences revealed that the following were positively associated with approval of end-of-life directives: maintaining one’s quality of life (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 2.44; 95% CI: 1.07-5.53), discussion with family members (AOR, 3.50; 95% CI: 1.49-8.26), and friend support networks (AOR, 3.36; 95% CI: 1.34-8.43). Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (AOR, 0.27; 95% CI: 0.09-0.79) was negatively associated with approval. There was also a positive association between the support of the legal validity of end-of-life directives (OR, 1.93; 95% CI: 1.07-3.48), without other confounding factors. In Taiwanese society, we remain mindful of cultural influences that may impact patients, including maintaining one’s quality of life, discussion with family members, and friend/support networks. These influences may help dementia patients complete their advance directives.