What is Advance Planning?
Advanced Planning allows you, your family and physicians to provide your desired care for you when you are unable to make your own decisions. The planning process can be difficult because it requires anticipating conditions that are hard to face and where we have no control. But advance care planning is the best way to ensure that, if others must make decisions for you, the decisions they make will represent your needs, desires and preferences. And putting your decisions in writing will help you decrease the challenges for your family.
We often hesitate having the discussion with our family. Taking the time to work through the process together helps everyone come to understand, discuss and plan for a time when you cannot make your own medical decisions. It can be a rich and rewarding time when sharing your wishes with others. And for many, it is the thoughtful conversations about our healthcare decisions and directives which give us the most control over our future.
- What are the conversations to have?
- When do I have them?
- Who should be involved?
- How do I help my family accept the conversation?
- How do I have the courage to ask for a family meeting?
- What do I do next?
You are not alone, many feel the same way – unsure how and where to start. We have partnered with the group that produces the acclaimed DVD – “Consider the Conversation” to offer you a resource to start your process. View a video clip below to learn more about how this resource is a powerful tool for advanced care planning.
On the Planning Resources page you will find numerous resources to follow for directive documents, family decision guides and planning process tools.
Our Home Hospice mission of serving the community includes providing information and tools to help you share your wishes with family, friends and healthcare providers to execute written advance directives in accordance with state laws. We have resources available on our website, at our information sessions and in partnership with other organizations to provide you the tools you need to start your planning process.
