Episode 23: Resolve to do your Advance Care Plan
We are joined by guest Gail Christopher to discuss Advance Care Planning. Gail is a nurse with over 40 years of experience in clinical nursing, surgery, utilization management, wellness coordination, and long term care among other things. In 2003 she obtained an MSN from UND with a focus on Nursing Administration. She works for Sanford Health in Fargo as the lead with the Advance Care Planning Team. In April 2019 she became a Certified Sacred Passage End of Life Doula through the Conscious Dying Institute in Boulder, CO. She has worked much of her career with the geriatric population and has a special interest in this area. She is a lifelong North Dakota native, and has 3 children and 5 grandchildren.
Advance care planning definition: formerly known as healthcare directive. Process of defining your goals and wishes for healthcare, especially if you’re unable to make those wishes known at some time in the future.
Barriers include
- Good health (feeling it doesn’t apply)
- Feeling their families already know wishes
- Misconception that it’s only for elderly
- Fear of facing mortality
- Mistrust of others’ ability to follow directive
Steps of completing an advance care directive
- Who do you want as an agent to speak on your behalf?
- Document your wishes
- Communicate with your family about your wishes so they can advocate for you
- Communicate with your PCP about your wishes. Your PCP can help maintain perspective and advocate for you
It’s important and can be helpful to think about how you want the end of your life to look.
Questions in advance care planning can include:
Where you want to die and how you would want that to look
What matters most to you? What makes life worth living?
Specific medical treatments that you would or would not want (including cost of certain treatments) - CPR, artificial nutrition, respiration, etc
Burial vs cremation vs donation
Organ donation
Autopsy
Once completed, advance care plans should be updated every 10 years or sooner if there are other major changes in health (new diagnoses, decline in health, death or change in the agent)
End of life can be a beautiful experience rather than something to fear.
Consults can be arranged with an advance care planning team. Local Sanford phone number: (701) 234-6980 to schedule an appointment or obtain advance care planning documents.
Resources:
https://www.cdc.gov/aging/pdf/acp-resources-public.pdf
Health Pearl: Butternut Squash Wild Rice Stew