Talking about End-of-Life Care

Thanks to my friend, Wendy Harpham, author of Happiness in a Storm and Only 10 Seconds to Care, for bringing to my attention a new guide for patients and their loved ones helpful to families and patients who are coping with final illness. Written by Paula Span, author of When the Time Comes: Families With Aging Parents Share Their Struggles and Solutions, “Advanced Cancer Care Planning: What Patients and Families Need to Know About Their Choices When Facing Serious Illness” may be downloaded free of charge from the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s website.

I read the guide and believe it may be useful in any kind of situation—not just when a final illness is cancer. Using language that if both compassionate and direct, the booklet is easy to read. It explains, for example, that the word “advanced” is synonymous with 'end-stage' or 'terminal,' and that this doesn’t mean that an advanced illness is untreatable or that death is imminent. It also explains that choices for care relieving pain and discomfort remain when cancer is progressing even though a patient is receiving the best available anti-cancer therapies.

As the booklet’s title makes clear, and Span explains, this is not the ultimate guide but is, rather, "a conversation-starter...[that] makes sense. The free, downloadable booklet includes sections on costs, advance directives, emotional and spiritual needs."

A major goal of the booklet is to help patients and families dealing with serious injuries and illnesses other than cancer. Span says, "[Because] families often complain that they wish they’d turned to hospice or palliative care earlier...[and] we know that some physicians (and patients) have trouble even saying “terminal” or “hospice,” this publication could ease the way for people with other diagnoses than cancer. The questions will be much the same, and help in framing them just as valuable."

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