Now, more than ever, it’s time to start the conversation about advance directives. Today, April 16th, is National Healthcare Decisions Day, an annual initiative to encourage people to express their wishes regarding healthcare. The coronavirus pandemic highlights the importance of making healthcare decisions known.
In these difficult times, many things are out of our control. But, we can be prepared and we can ensure that those we care about are also prepared. Here are three important steps we all can take to help make our wishes known:
1. Choose someone to be your health care decision-maker. Make it official by filling out a decision-maker form. If social distancing makes it difficult to create an official legal document, writing down your wishes is better than silence.
2. Carefully think about your wishes. These questions can help: What if you became seriously ill with COVID-19? What would be important to you? What would worry you? What would help you the most? Would you like to be cared for at home or in the hospital?
3. Tell your decision-maker and other important people in your life about your wishes. Also, make sure to talk to your health care team about your advance directives.
For more information about National Healthcare Decisions Day, visit https://theconversationproject.org/nhdd/.
To learn more about how United Hospice can help, please visit see our Introduction to Advance Directives.