Hospice News
New Jersey -- Perhaps one of the most difficult, but most important, conversations we need to have with our loved ones is the one about death and dying. Whether it is about your own end-of-life wishes or a family member’s or friend’s, making preferences known is important at any age. While initiating the topic is the most difficult part of starting the conversation, once past the initial discomfort, most people are relieved to have the issues out in the open.
Barnabas Health Hospice and Palliative Care Center, which supports facilities in West Orange, Long Branch, Newark and Van Dyke Hospice and Palliative Care Center in Toms River, offers the following suggestions to help get the conversation started.
- Start by expressing how much you respect your loved one’s desire to have their wishes followed after they are gone. If that feels too uncomfortable, bring up an example of a family member who did not leave instructions about their dying or even an example from the news about a celebrity’s death that has caused confusion and legal battles.
- Sometimes it is helpful to acknowledge your discomfort bringing up the subject while expressing the need to do so to ensure your loved one’s wishes are fulfilled. Recognizing it is not an easy topic will often help relax those involved.
- Encourage your loved one to answer the following questions about how, where and with whom they would like to spend the last days of their life: Do I want to die at home or in a medical facility?; Who do I want with me when that time comes?; Do I want life-sustaining treatment? And who will make that decision if I am incapacitated?; What kind of funeral service do I want?; Where do I want to be buried?
Putting these wishes in writing in an Advance Directive will help give everyone involved clarity and peace of mind. An Advanced Directive is a legal document consisting of two parts: a Living Will, explicitly describing a person’s wishes regarding medical treatment, particularly whether or not they wish to be given life-prolonging treatment when death is imminent and a Health Care Power of Attorney, appointing someone to act on their behalf and make decisions regarding their medical treatment if they are unable to do so. You can obtain a copy of an Advanced Directive at your physician’s office or the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services web site at www.state.nj.us.
Barnabas Health Hospice and Palliative Care Center (BHHPCC) offers comprehensive services to Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Morris, Somerset, Passaic and Union County residents from its locations in West Orange and at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark; to Monmouth County residents from BHHPCC at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch; and to Ocean County residents from Van Dyke Hospice and Palliative Care Center in Toms River.
For more information about Barnabas Health Hospice and Palliative Care Center, please visit www.barnabashealthhospice.org.
Date: December 21, 2011
Contact: Lisa Tortorello
Public Relations: ltortorello@barnabashealth.org
973-322-4924
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