FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Making End-of-Life Decisions Topic of July 24 Senior Seminar
ARCADIA (July 18, 2012) – If you were ill or injured and unable to speak for yourself, what kind of medical care would you want and who would you want to speak for you?
The Methodist Hospital 50-plus program will sponsor a lecture and panel discussion on advance directives 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 24, at the Arcadia Community Center, 365 Campus Drive.
The panel will include Brenda Simonds, director, Methodist Hospital spiritual care; Wendy Kohlhase, PhD, bioethics consultant; and Pamela Wright, VITAS community liaison.
Panel members will discuss the various advance directives, what a “do not resuscitate” order means and the new POLST form that facilitates the continuity of health care. They will explain what each does and how it works, and they will answer questions on what you should have in place to help avoid confusion later.
Advance directives help convey your wishes and decisions to your family, friends and health-care providers. It is not always easy to decide what you want or whom you would like to speak on your behalf. While all advance directives are helpful, not all advance directives are legally binding. The panel will identify what makes an advance directive legally binding and what considerations should be made in creating an advance directive that works for you.
Immediately following the seminar, a free workshop will provide advance directive forms and help completing the form. The workshop and forms are available through VITAS Innovative Hospice Care, the San Gabriel Valley End-of-Life Coalition and Methodist Hospital.
For reservations, please call 626-574-5130.
About Methodist Hospital
Founded in 1903, Methodist Hospital is a not-for-profit hospital licensed for 596 beds serving Arcadia and surrounding communities. Services include comprehensive acute care such as medical, surgical, perinatal, pediatrics, oncology, intensive care and complete cardiovascular services, including open-heart surgery. Methodist Hospital is an approved STEMI cardiac center, a certified stroke center and a center of excellence in bariatric services. The hospital’s cancer center is accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer.
Methodist Hospital is accredited by The Joint Commission, which accredits and certifies more than 19,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. For more information, visit methodisthospital.org.
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