How To Make Good Health Care Decisions At The End Of Life

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(Photo by Ida Mae Astute /ABC via Getty Images)

Medical care at the end of life is in the news this week. Barbara Bush opted for palliative care in lieu of continuing curative care – she wanted to be at peace at home surrounded by the people she loved. This is also National Health Care Decisions Week – the time we should set aside with our family to discuss our health care choices at the end of life. In honor of both, I share my perspective as a physician and a financial planner on how to approach this difficult topic.

Live life fully

The first step to addressing end of life care is to think about it long before the end and to do your best to live a great life in the present. People who have lived fully without regret tend to have the most peace about their end of life.

Those with a load of unfinished business tend to “fight” to the end, not realizing that the fight often costs significant time, energy, money, and angst, and leaves them with no time or energy to finish their business. In their zeal to survive at all costs, they frequently forgo the important conversations that should occur before death, fearing those conversations will result in a quicker demise.

Determine what quality of life is important to you

The next step is to think about the quality of life that is important to you. This may change over time, but if you get into a situation where there is certainty you will never communicate ever again, do you really want your family and doctors to keep you going? Thinking through what you can’t live without and making certain everyone is on the same page with that decision will make it more likely your wishes will be honored.

We did a study in our practice a couple of years ago asking every client what activities were important for them to keep living in the event of a serious illness. There were four consistent answers – the ability to communicate with those around them, swallow food, maintain basic grooming skills, and have meaningful interactions. One client with a serious illness recently shared, “If I can no longer drink my wine in the evening, call hospice.”

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(Photo by Ida Mae Astute /ABC via Getty Images)

Medical care at the end of life is in the news this week. Barbara Bush opted for palliative care in lieu of continuing curative care – she wanted to be at peace at home surrounded by the people she loved. This is also National Health Care Decisions Week – the time we should set aside with our family to discuss our health care choices at the end of life. In honor of both, I share my perspective as a physician and a financial planner on how to approach this difficult topic.

Live life fully

The first step to addressing end of life care is to think about it long before the end and to do your best to live a great life in the present. People who have lived fully without regret tend to have the most peace about their end of life.

Those with a load of unfinished business tend to “fight” to the end, not realizing that the fight often costs significant time, energy, money, and angst, and leaves them with no time or energy to finish their business. In their zeal to survive at all costs, they frequently forgo the important conversations that should occur before death, fearing those conversations will result in a quicker demise.

Determine what quality of life is important to you

The next step is to think about the quality of life that is important to you. This may change over time, but if you get into a situation where there is certainty you will never communicate ever again, do you really want your family and doctors to keep you going? Thinking through what you can’t live without and making certain everyone is on the same page with that decision will make it more likely your wishes will be honored.

We did a study in our practice a couple of years ago asking every client what activities were important for them to keep living in the event of a serious illness. There were four consistent answers – the ability to communicate with those around them, swallow food, maintain basic grooming skills, and have meaningful interactions. One client with a serious illness recently shared, “If I can no longer drink my wine in the evening, call hospice.”

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolynmcclanahan/2018/04/20/how-to-make-good-health-care-decisions-at-the-end-of-life/