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The Importance of The Conversation
Dwight Wilson, Executive Director
Palliative care physicians focus on providing comfort and improving the quality of life for anyone who has a serious illness. At Celia’s House, we provide this care for terminally ill residents who are on hospice care with six months or less of expected life.
On September 5th, Dr. Elizabeth Harmon, palliative care physician at Asante Cancer Center, and I, had the pleasure of presenting a forum to 90 people on New Approaches to End-of-Life Care. The forum is a series of meaningful conversations called “Big Ideas,” sponsored by the Ashland Branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) in collaboration with Jackson County Library Services (JCLS).
Dr. Harmon and I both talked about the importance of beginning the end-of-life conversation with everyone who is close to you while you are healthy, or early in the course of your illness. We also took good questions from the audience. For example:
Who should I give my health care durable power of attorney to?
We recommend that you give copies to everyone who is close to you because it reduces the potential for loss of the document. Also, having more people who know your wishes can help reduce the possibility of decision-making tension if people cannot find the document.
How often should I review my advance directives?
Review them every year, and every time you experience a health challenge. For those of you who haven’t started the discussion, think of this process as a gift that keeps on giving.
My thanks to AAUW and JCLS for the opportunity to address this important conversation. I’ll also be teaching a course on end-of life discussion and preparation through OLLI at SOU beginning Friday, September 15, 2023.
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