National Healthcare Decisions Day: April 16

[Gaelen]

The NHDD isn't political and it has nothing to do with the current votes in the US Senate and House of Representatives about funding healthcare.

National Healthcare Decisions Day, April 16 (this Saturday) is all about encouraging people of all ages, sick or well, to "have the conversation" with doctors and family members. It aims to help people get the conversation started and formalize their wishes for treatment during illness and end-of-life care.

We've talked about the importance of doing this well in advance of needing the documents necessary to legally express our wishes. This group provides resources to help start the conversation with loved ones and with doctors, and links to downloadable and printable healthcare proxies, advanced directives and living wills which are legal if created according to the laws of the state(s) in which you live and/or get care.

I especially like the way that Nathan Kottcamp phrased this not-easy part of cancer treatment as "a gift to our loved ones."