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Talking Mats and Advance Care Planning
Online Advanced Training, March 19th 2025
Thank you to Lois Cameron for this blog about our 2025 revised Thinking Ahead Resource
Why have Advance Care Planning conversations?
It is very important to involve people in Advance Care Planning, in Scotland this is called Future Care Planning. Evidence shows that people who are forward thinking and express their views, are more likely to receive the care they want. It results in less invasive treatment and provides comfort and reassurance. Having these conversations can also reduce the burden on relatives, friends and carers as they don’t have to work out what an individual wants.
The Thinking Ahead Talking Mats Resource
The Thinking Ahead Talking Mats Resource was developed in partnership with Strathcarron Hospice. Funding from Neurological Care and Support in Scotland allowed us to map the existing resource against other resources in this field and test it out more widely, particularly with people living with neurological conditions. Following this, we have made a few changes to the original Talking Mats Thinking Ahead resource and are now launching version 2
Why use Talking Mats ?
- Talking Mats provides a neutral space for people to reflect on what they are thinking.
- The Thinking Ahead Resource allows people to think about what they have organised, or want to organize, consider different options, and develop a plan to fulfil their wishes.
- It provides staff with a structured supportive way to have these conversations, supports them to really listen and have an easy way of sharing their patients’ views with others.
The feedback from our latest project shows what a helpful tool the Talking Mats thinking ahead resource is;
“They originally thought they had everything planned for the future but there were a few areas they had not considered and said they found it very helpful and plan to talk to their son” (participant 1)
“This was a positive but emotional conversation. My thinker shared a lot of her plans for leaving memories ……. I was a bit anxious about raising some of the topics with her as she has always been very reserved and hasn’t wanted to talk very much about the future, however following the mat she opened up in a way that she hasn’t before” (participant 8)
Thinking Ahead: Advanced Online Training
We learned a lot from the participants from our latest project and will share this learning through an advanced training session on the 19th March 9.30- 12.30. Each participant will receive their own copy of the Resource before the training session.
Delivered jointly by Talking Mats and Strathcarron Hospice the session will;
- explore how to introduce the Resource to support helpful conversation
- explore ways to personalise and make the Resource relevant to an individual’s specific situation
- discuss how to hold the emotion that can be generated
- discuss using with people with significant communication disabilities
- support you to think about using the Resource in your work setting and plan next steps
Learning will be through short talks, interactive activities, watching and reflecting on videos and small group discussion. There will be a mid-morning screen break.
To join this Thinking Ahead advanced training you need to;
- have completed the Talking Mats Foundation training.
- attend with a system that will allow you to join in the Teams chat during the session and go into small breakout rooms.
- book onto our Advanced training via the website shop before 7th of March.
The cost is £95 and this covers the resource and the training. Places are limited to make sure to book on soon. Resources will be posted out the week before training. Bookings close on the 7th of March.
If you’d like to become Foundation Trained there are lots of ways. Click on the button to find out more
