Imagine that you are in a hospital and can’t speak – something most of us care providers rarely consider. Who will make your health care decisions? Or, imagine your mother has slipped into a coma and isn’t expected to recover. Do you know her care wishes? We all hope to communicate until the end of our life. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always happen that way as you may have seen first-hand in your health care career.
April 16, 2013 is National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD). Advance care planning allows adults to decide what medical care they would and would not want at the end of life and who can make medical decisions on their behalf should they become unable to make those decisions.
As a participating NHDD organization, OSF HealthCare provides this service free for patients and their spouses. OSF has trained staff called OSF Care Decisions Facilitators available to talk to you in the event you haven’t had a chance yet to do your own advance care planning. You can call us today at (309) 308-5950 to make an appointment.
Next week, I’ll share some of the feedback we have received from grateful family members who have had their advance care plans prepared prior to the onset of a dire health-related situation.
Last Updated: October 31, 2019