It’s been spring for three weeks now, the season that signals rebirth and renewal.
But, at least for a moment, we’re focusing on the end of things.
End-of-life isn’t a topic most people care to think about, but once you get over the shock of learning you won’t live forever, considering your final moments on Earth isn’t all that terrible. Really.
More importantly, having your final wishes written down on paper means your loved ones won’t have to make wrenching choices while you’re lying unconscious in a hospital.
That’s the whole idea behind National Health Care Decisions Day — and a free local program on Friday.
This year’s event, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, is happening online only.
Like previous years, the program will focus on the importance of completing power of attorney for health care forms and will feature community members discussing their own experiences with completing their advance directives.
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An important topic
Helen Sampson, the quality coordinator with Kenosha County’s Aging and Disability Resource Center and one of the organizers of the local program, said she hopes the ongoing pandemic “has made people think about end-of-life issues.”
“It’s still a hard topic for some people,” she said, “but after spending a year putting on masks and sanitizing your hands, the question, ‘Do you want to be on a ventilator?’ is not so hypothetical anymore.”
Locally, the annual program started in 2016 but skipped 2020.
“It was too early in the learning curve for us to go virtual last year,” Sampson explained, as in-person gatherings in 2020 quickly became virtual events “attended” via computer screens.
Sampson
“We’ve now had time to put together a virtual program, and our partners at Aurora Advocate offered to do the technical aspect of it, which we appreciate,” Sampson said.
Having to use technology in a new way, Sampson said, “speaks to our resilience as human beings — that we can jump on another horse and keep riding. One of my mantras is ‘endings really matter,’ and COVID has shown that to be so true. There were so many endings for people that were just not what anybody wanted.
“I think it will have an impact on our nation’s mental health for a long time to come.”
Don’t fear the reaper
Rita Hagen, executive director of Hospice Alliance, is a member of the Kenosha County Care Transitions Coalition, which organizes the local Health Care Decisions Day program.
Hagen said the group, which includes representatives from nursing homes, hospitals, home care groups and pharmacies, has been around since about 2011 and is working to get more people to fill out these advanced directives.
She stresses that end-of-life planning “isn’t just an old person’s thing. Bad things can happen to young people, too.”
National Health Care Decisions Day “was founded in 2008 by Nathan Kottkamp, a health care lawyer, to provide clear, concise and consistent information,” Hagen said. “We do not know if this was his intention, but I like that the date is April 16, the day after tax day, because what we do we know for sure in life is death and taxes.
“The other funny thing, at least to me, is that it was started by an attorney, but an attorney is NOT needed to complete the forms.”
Kottkamp, Hagen added with a chuckle, “probably didn’t think about the effects on his income.”
Hagen worked as a nurse in a hospital for several years “and you see people come in and get hooked up to machines,” she said. “It’s hard to stop all that once it has started.”
It’s important, she said, for people to “have the conversation with their family members and make sure your end-of-life wishes are known.”
Hagen realizes, “This is a difficult subject for most people to talk about. It’s an uncomfortable thing. Keep this in mind: We hope you’ll be around for a long time, but it’s best to be prepared.”
To complete the paperwork, you need to designate two people as “health care agents” to make decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated.
It can be a relative, a friend, a neighbor or someone from your church, Hagen said.
“Think of someone who is good in a crisis,” she advises.