The public consultation for the new national Emergency Care and Treatment Plan started recently. The UK-wide ECTP will go some way to addressing the issues of premature deaths and poor decision-making that many have highlighted for over a decade.

The public consultation is a key stage in the process towards implementation later this year and having feedback from people with a learning disability and their carers is important.  If you would like to respond to the consultation, please go to the ECTP consultation website which is available on https://www.resus.org.uk/consultations/emergency-care-and-treatment-plan/.

The following key statement from the website may be helpful:

The Emergency Care and Treatment Plan records a personal summary of decisions about what types of care and treatment an individual would or would not want to receive, and about what types of care and treatment would or would not be of potential benefit to them if their health deteriorates and they are unable to make choices at the time.

It aims to ensure that each individual receives the best possible treatment for their specific situation in any setting (e.g. their home, nursing home, hospital, hospice, or during an ambulance journey).