Plan of Care

Often when a patient is referred to Palliative Care, they are in need of assistance deciding what next steps are in managing an advanced illness. To help them decide, we discuss what they understand about their illness, what they’d like to improve on, and options for meeting their goals.

All adults, not just ones facing serious illness, should have advance directives. Over time, these wishes may change depending on diagnosis, quality of life, and spiritual beliefs. Our team is able to help determine what options are best for the patient and family, as well as completing forms and paperwork.

We understand this task seems overwhelming, especially for families. Our goal is to identify what is needed for each individual patient and provide the forms. Some forms may need a physician signature or to be notarized. Additionally, these forms can be updated over time to best fit the needs of the patient.

Forms can include, but not limited to:

• Living Will
• POLST
• HCPOA
• State/organization specific forms
• Body donation

Further guidance can be provided for patients seeking help with setting up a trust or if a patient is a ward of the state.