An overview of advance directives and care planning [Video]

Advance Directives provide legal documentation for healthcare wishes, while Advance Care Planning helps patients and their families make difficult end-of-life decisions.

Advance Directives allow patients to choose someone to make healthcare decisions for them, plus create a living will. With several options available to patients and their families, it's important to help them understand their choices.

When discussing end-of-life matters with your patients, encourage conversations with their family members. According to the National Healthcare Decisions Day Conversation Project, 90 percent of people feel talking to their loved ones about end-of-life care is important, yet only 27 percent actually do.

To feel confident in your ability to support your residents, take the "Advance Directives" and "Advance Care Planning" courses from Mariposa Training.