Created with input from health care and legal professionals across the state and approved in 2010 by the Louisiana Legislature as Act 954, the Louisiana Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment (LaPOST) document is a best-practice model for patients with serious, advanced illnesses to state their preferences for end-of-life treatment in a physician's order.

Modeled after Oregon's Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) Paradigm document, LaPOST was endorsed in in 2006 by the Louisiana State Medical Society and in July 2012 by the National Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) Paradigm Task Force. It was also recommended by the Louisiana Health Care Redesign Collaborative's End-of-Life workgroup.

The LaPOST document improves communication between patients and doctors by providing the mechanism for those with serious, advanced illnesses to express their preferences about medical care, and because the document travels with them across health care settings, it ensures that those wishes are honored, regardless of their location.

Since its approval by the state legislature, the LaPOST document has continued to integrate into Louisiana's health care system, assisting patients and families and health care professionals in developing care plans that meet patients' specific needs and goals of care.

In order to continue this integration the Quality Forum’s has partnered with Vynca to allow health care providers across multiple care delivery continuums in Louisiana to electronically complete, store, and access patients’ end-of life wishes. This collaboration will help enhance the state’s current advance care planning program, which includes the Louisiana Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment (LaPOST) form.

There are no events scheduled at this time.

 

If you would like to request additional information about LaPOST or schedule an interview with LaPOST representatives or LaPOST Coalition members, please contact Monique Tyler at 225.300.4825 or mtyler@lhcqf.org.

03/30/21 -- Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum Supports Furthering Advanced Care Planning and Increased LaPOST Education Across the State

02/19/20 -- Vynca and Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum Partner with Ochsner, Prioritizing Patients' End-of-Life Wishes

07/24/18 -- Vynca and Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum Partner To Implement Statewide Electronic End-of-Life Medical Orders Registry

Special thanks to the original LaPOST Coalition members:

We also appreciate the National POLST Paradigm Task Force and its member organizations for sharing their knowledge and insight with us as we work to improve end-of-life care in Louisiana. 

 

If you or your organization would like to assist the LaPOST Coalition in its efforts to drive quality improvements in end-of-life care in our state, please contact Linda Morgan, LaPOST Project Director, at lmorgan@lhcqf.org for information.